Udupi: T. Venkatesh, Deputy Commissioner, said on Friday that ‘Sagar Kavach’ coastal security mock exercise would be conducted in Udupi district on December 15 and 16. He was speaking at a meeting of officers at the District Offices Complex, here.

Mr. Venkatesh said that the mock security exercise was being undertaken on the directions of the Home Ministry to deal with any possible terrorist activity in the district. As many as 24 sensitive places had been identified, where terrorist activity could take place. These places had been provided tight security.

During the exercise, fishermen, who venture into the sea, will have to immediately call on 1093 (coastal security police) or 100 (police control room) or 1077 (DC office control room), if they find any suspicious boats, material or persons. The fishermen should not take aboard any unidentified persons on their boats, he said.

An officer of the Department of Fisheries said the department had already held a meeting with fishermen and explained the exercise to them. An officer of Coastal Security Police (CSP) said that the boats of the CSP would be guarding the beaches in the district and the sea up to five nautical miles from the coast, during the exercise.

K.T. Balakrishna, Superintendent of Police, said that the police had tightened security by setting up check-posts from Hejmady to Shiroor on National Highway 66 to prevent any possibility of terrorists entering through the roads.

The police would check all vehicles entering the district and also look out for suspicious persons or objects. They would also keep a tight vigil at bus-stands. Mobile teams and rapid action force units too had been deployed to prevent any terrorist incidents, he said.

Prabhudev Mane, Security Officer, from Manipal University, said that 500 private security guards were working in three shifts on the university campus as part of the exercise. They had been trained in preventing any untoward activity. Mobile teams were regularly patrolling the campus, he said.

Yogishwar, Commissioner of Religious Endowments, informed the meeting that security had been tightened at the Sri Mookambika Temple at Kollur.

“Since vehicles would be checked during this exercise, people should not panic but cooperate with the administration. They could call the above mentioned numbers if they noticed any persons behaving suspiciously or suspicious objects, Mr. Venkatesh said.