The Hindu : National : Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project will boost security

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Friday, Jul 15, 2005

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National

Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project will boost security

V. Jayanth

Navy, Coast Guard stand to gain the most in mobility The history and the economic considerations aside, the shipping channel project may be most useful from the national security perspective.

CHENNAI: At a national seminar in Kozhikode on Tuesday, the consensus among speakers and delegates was that the Sethusamudram Shipping Channel Project (SSCP) should be viewed from the national security angle.

Such a perspective will obviate the need to weigh the economic benefits or potential return on investment.

Considering that the channel is estimated to cost Rs. 2420 crore, questions were raised about the returns and whether the Government of India could tap foreign and domestic private investment if the project was indeed viable.

Some of the panellists and a handful of delegates, some from the Navy, said that there was a clear security angle to the SSCP. Aside from the fact that it could provide a major boost to coastal shipping and promote the emergence of the Tuticorin harbour as a hub in the east coast, there were distinct security advantages. It offered a direct link between the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea through the Palk Bay, entirely on Indian territorial waters.

Direct benefit

A direct benefit from the channel would be the ability of Naval and Coast Guard vessels to cross over from the eastern side to the west and vice versa in a much shorter duration and avoid having to traverse international waters. In times of emergency, even for a natural calamity, the Navy or Coast Guard could mobilise more vessels and men in a shorter span of time, the speakers said.

The seminar was organised by the Kerala Chapter, Society for Indian Ocean Studies, Kunhali Marakkar Centre for West Asian Studies and Chair for Maritime Studies and Research, Calicut University.

`Evolutionary changes'

Setting the tone for the discussions, Coast Guard Deputy Director General Prabhakaran Paleri saw "evolutionary changes" in this more than century-old proposal. "How do a people handle such projects in a developing country poised for growth with an additional dimension of geostrategy thrown in? The answer lies in realistic thinking, without getting emotionally involved in the plot, as in the case of any process in strategic initiatives."

Though the project was not implemented all these decades, it was never really abandoned.

In the course of the discussions, the delegates took the line that in view of the security perspective, the SSCP should not be considered in mere economic terms - of debt and equity, internal investment returns or viability. There were concerns relating to protection of the ecology and environment in the area, the possible impact on fisheries and the need to provide a proper rehabilitation for fishermen who could lose their livelihood because of the dredging and the channel.

Strongest argument

Perhaps the strongest argument in favour of the SSCP came from V. Suryanarayan, Professor for Maritime Studies and Research, Calicut University. He said the channel would enhance the nation's defence capabilities. "Unfortunately, this aspect of the Sethusamudram project has not received the attention it deserves from strategic specialists and media personnel.

In particular, the significant dimensions of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam's (LTTE) military preparations need to be highlighted... The emergence of Sea Tigers as a credible fighting force in India's maritime neighbourhood has to be analysed in the context of changing strategic environment, especially in the Palk Bay, the objectives of the Sea Tigers and the likely dangers posed by maritime terrorism."

Check on terrorism

The channel would enhance and facilitate the presence and movement of the Navy and Coast Guard and put an effective check on the activities of the Sea Tigers in the region.

There was also a Sri Lankan perspective on the project, with its Deputy High Commissioner in Chennai, Sumith Nakhandala, voicing the concerns of his Government and the business community.

But he expressed the confidence that bearing in mind the Indian Prime Minister's assurance to President Chandrika Kumaratunga, all these concerns would be fully addressed. Bilateral technical-level meetings would continue to consider the environmental and other issues raised by Colombo.

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