Gandhinagar: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday called for a consensus amongst different countries to create a common judicial framework for combating terrorism via sea-route as well as piracy.
"The success in exploiting the maritime potential will depend upon nation's commitment and responses. However, all this cannot happen without international commitment and unanimity for safety and security," Modi said.
"For this purpose, a sound international legal framework and comprehensive policy regime are essential. The legal framework must balance the needs, concerns and interests of all stakeholders," he said while inaugurating the Global Maritime Security and Anti-Piracy Conference-2011 in Gandhinagar.
India has a central position in the Indian Ocean. It has extensive interest in maritime and coastal activities in Asia pacific, Modi said.
"The vast size and largely unregulated nature of the waterways have made the maritime environment attractive for trans-national violence. Both piracy and sea borne terrorism have become more common in last few decades," he said.
This has further gone up due to global proliferation of small arms, Modi said.
Several terrorist groups have developed significant capabilities to conduct attack at sea, under the sea and more recently from the sea, he said.
These terrorist groups are equipped with modern navigational equipments and communication technology. They have developed innovative ways to the challenge of security and maritime forces, Modi said.
Modi said, global conference on terrorism and piracy on the third anniversary of 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks is significant to combat attacks from seaside on Mumbai.
"Some analysts fear that they may exploit the freight trade in system to trigger a global economic crisis. They may use the container supply chain to transport weapons of mass destruction," Modi said.
He said, Gujarat, with a coastline of 1,600 km, has a long history of maritime geography and trade. It has emerged as a gateway to India's foreign trade with Europe, Africa, Middle East and South Asia in the 21st Century.
"The trade through sea route is set to further increase," Modi said.
Highlighting the initiatives taken by the state to strengthen state's coastal security, Modi said "We have set up a radar-based vessel traffic management system (VTMS) in the Gulf of Khambat, which shall monitor movement of vessels in higher sea and on Gujarat coast."
A similar system is under implementation in Gulf of Kutch, he said.
To intensify the security of ports in Gujarat, the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code shall be implemented, Modi said.
The state government is keen to ensure that latest measures are taken and technologies implemented to make the state waters safe, he said.
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