Gujarat Maritime Board wakes up, to make TWS process ‘transparent’

Is the Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) contemplating to invite fresh tenders for installing the Tracking and Warning System (TWS) for boats sailing off the Gujarat coast?

A day after DNA reported that the government might be compromising on national security to favour a corporate house with questionable history, sources close to the developments said the state agency might scrap the process currently in its final stages and call for fresh tenders.

GMB officials refused to confirm whether the process of the past year is being scrapped, but insisted that “now all precautions will be taken”. “The process followed will be transparent. A committee of very senior officers will decide who will be given the contract,” the officials said.

Meanwhile, the porous Gujarat coastline continues to be a threat. The much-touted Vessel Traffic and Port Management System (VTPMS) is ready to be implemented in Gulf of Khambhat by this month-end. But the project to similarly put all boats passing through Kutch and Saurashtra coastline on radar is not likely to be implemented before December 2011. “Gujarat government and Kandla Port Trust are contributing only 25% to the project; the rest is being funded by the Central government,” officials at GMB said.

However, boats plying through the Gulf of Khambhat may soon get closely monitored. “About 95% of the works of VTPMS at an expense of about Rs150 crore has been completed. A contract has been signed with Aatash NorControl for 30 years,” they said.

According to officials, the coastline is currently managed by personal surveillance. There are also plans to start underwater surveillance to manage movements on the high seas. “Specially designed radar extractor, trackers and underwater sonar, stationed at strategic locations, make surface water safe and also make underwater surveillance possible,” GMB officials said.