Nearly a year after the Mumbai attacks, the country's western coast, hosting several petroleum and nuclear installations are still vulnerable to terror strikes from the sea route.
A top government source said today that there have been regular intelligence inputs like November last year, when Pakistan-based LeT members came to attack the financial metropolis through the sea route. Fresh attempts could be made by the terrorists to target India's vital installations.
"Petroleum and nuclear installations located on the western coast are highly vulnerable. Besides, schools, five-star hotels, shopping malls could also be targeted by the terrorists," the source said.
The Centre has already alerted the states concerned asking them to heighten security around these complexes.
The Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC} located in Trombay, a Mumbai suburb, was put on maximum alert and anti-aircraft guns were deployed in this prestigious facility.
A good number of nuclear power plants in the country are located along this coast. Six refineries, including Reliance Industries Ltd, are located along the West coast in places like Jamnagar, Mumbai, Mangalore and Kochi.
Security agencies are particularly worried over the fact that country has nearly a million fishing boats operating in the Arabian sea, and subversive elements may try to hijack any of them; like in November last year when a fishing trawler was hijacked by the terrorists to reach the Mumbai harbour.
"If someone comes via Nepal or through Kashmir, we get some information. But it is still difficult to get pin-pointed information about someone coming through the sea route," the source said.
The Indian Navy, Coast Guard and all other security agencies have been directed to take precautionary measures to protect such installations as majority of them are located on the sea coast.
"We have improved our intelligence gathering mechanism to a great extent, and we hope that through our increased vigilance in the sea, we will be able to thwart any fresh attempt by terrorists to attack India," the source said.
According to earlier intelligence inputs the LeT was also planning to attack two schools — Doon and Woodstock in Uttarakhand — and hotels in Goa which are regularly frequented by foreign tourists.
