9th National Pollution Response Exercise starts in the Gulf of Kutch

Indian Coast Guard (ICG) commenced two-day National Level Pollution Response Exercise (NATPOLREX-lX) from 24 November 2023 at Vadinar in Gulf of Kutch, Gujarat. The exercise will end on 25 November 2023.

• Indian Coast Guard has initiated the 9th edition of National Level Pollution Response Exercise-IX (NATPOLREX-IX) off the Vadinar coast, in line with the National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan (NOS-DCP).
• This exercise is an important initiative that tests various aspects of marine pollution response mechanisms and assesses the preparedness of resource agencies to deal with any marine spill contingencies.
• Indian Coast Guard Director General K Rakesh Pal and other senior officers are participating in the exercise along with other stakeholders responsible for combating pollution in the ocean.

Other exercises conducted by ICG:

• Coastal Security Exercise, Sagar Kavach:
  • Indian Coast Guard recently conducted a three-day coastal security exercise, Sagar Kavach, from 21 to 23 November 2023 in Andaman and Nicobar Islands to assess the preparedness and response mechanisms of all parties interested in coastal security mechanisms.

Nationwide Pollution Response Exercise (NATPOLREX-VIII):

• Indian Coast Guard conducted the eighth edition of the Nationwide Pollution Response Exercise (NATPOLREX-VIII) at Mormugao Port, Goa from 19 to 20 April 2022.
• The eighth edition of this national level pollution response exercise was attended by over 85 participants from 50 agencies, including 29 foreign observers from 22 friendly foreign countries and international organisations and two ships from Sri Lanka Coast Guard and Bangladesh.

Sagar Kavach (Coastal Security Exercise):

• ‘Sagar Kavach’ is a biennial coastal security exercise jointly conducted by the Indian Navy, Indian Coast Guard and Coastal Police.
• About 7500 km of India. The long coastline passes through 9 states (Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal) and 4 union territories (Daman and Diu, Lakshadweep, Puducherry and Andaman and Nicobar Islands).
• Since the 2008 Mumbai attacks, coastline security has become a priority for India's maritime security agencies. Along with this, many measures have been taken under the plan to reorganize coastal security.