Central Auditor Flags Delays In Strengthening Security Of Naval Assets

Fast Interception Crafts (FICs) were inducted into the Sagar Prahari Bal (SPB) with a delay of 13 to 61 months, the auditor said.

An approval accorded by the Cabinet Committee on Security in February 2009 to enhance the security of all coastal and offshore naval assets within three years in the aftermath of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks was "diluted" due to delays in creating the enabling framework, national auditor CAG has said.

It said Fast Interception Crafts (FICs) were inducted into the Sagar Prahari Bal (SPB) with a delay of 13 to 61 months, adding the infrastructure envisaged by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) was not available till June last at a few naval ports, according to the report by the Comptroller and Auditor General.

The report was tabled in Parliament on Tuesday.

"The urgency in CCS's sanction (February 2009) following the 26/11 terror attack for setting up a maritime force (Sagar Prahari Bal, SPB)) within a period of three years so as to provide security to all coastal and offshore naval assets, was diluted due to delays in creating the enabling setup (Fast Interception Crafts, FICs, and manpower infrastructure)," the CAG said in a press statement.