Coast Guard Pollution Control Vessel- Indian Coast Guard Ship Samudra Prahari and six other ships of the force, several Coast Guard aircraft, a naval vessel, a tanker from Shipping Corporation of India and vessels from BPCL and Cochin Port Trust will participate in the exercise NATPOLREX-IV.
Vice Admiral M P Muralidharan, Director General Indian Coast Guard, will be present to review the conduct of the exercise.
The Coast Guard is responsible for marine environment protection in maritime zones of India and is the coordinating authority for response to oil spills in Indian waters.
The Force has drawn up a National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan (NOSDCP) and has established three pollution response centers at Mumbai, Chennai and Port Blair. A robust national system for oil spill response is critical in as 75 per cent of our oil imports are through the sea.
Representatives of the National Institute of Oceanography, Oil Industry Safety Directorate, Central and Kerala Pollution Control Boards and petroleum companies will also witness the exercise.
