Security along the coastline in Maharashtra’s Raigad district was stepped up after a suspicious boat was spotted near the Revdanda coast on Sunday, July 6. Security personnel saw the boat around two nautical miles off the Korlai coast in Revdanda, an official told the news agency PTI.
Prima facie, the vessel is suspected to bear markings of another country and may have drifted to the Raigad coast. Following the alert, teams from Raigad Police, Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS), Quick Response Team (QRT), the Navy and the Coast Guard rushed to the spot.
Raigad Superintendent of Police Anchal Dalal, along with senior police officials, reached the coast to monitor the situation, the official said. Efforts to reach the boat were hampered by heavy rain and strong winds. Dalal herself attempted to approach the boat using a barge but had to return due to adverse weather, the official added. A large contingent of police was deployed in the area and overall security in the district was heightened as a precautionary measure.
The Coast Guard and Raigad police are searching for an unidentified boat last seen near Korlai Fort, Alibag Revdanda. Despite extensive sea searches since morning, the boat remains untraced, prompting plans to deploy a helicopter for continued search efforts.