CHENNAI: Director General of the Indian Coast Guard Prabhakaran Paleri on Friday advocated the need for a rail over-bridge or a road to link Danushkodi and Talaimannar on the lines of those in Qatar and Bahrain or Singapore and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia.

Speaking at a lecture-cum-discussion meeting, organised by the Department of Defence and Strategic Studies, University of Madras, and the Chennai chapter of the Society for Indian Ocean Studies, on `Island Security: India's Maritime Perspective,' Mr. Paleri said the road link would be a "practical idea."

"If a highway comes through, linking Danushkodi and Talaimannar, the dynamics of the Sri Lanka Government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam will change by the sheer pressure of tourists as also the geo-strategy of the island nation and India," he said. He welcomed the Union Government's initiative to construct the Sethusamudram canal project.

Stating that he had conveyed the importance of the Sethusamudram project to both the Sri Lankan and the Indian Governments, he demanded the Centre to declare the Gulf of Mannar region a `particularly sensitive sea area.'

Asked whether islands in the country were facing terrorist threats, he said: "We do not face any threats from terrorists. But, our islands are vulnerable to natural disasters like the tsunami. Our islands are protected from the threats of illegal immigration and trafficking," he said.

Earlier speaking on island security, he said India's island security was part of national security. "We do not have a specific threat to the 1,197 islands."

Pointing out the differences in the security management of 1,192 islands in the Maldives and those in India, the Coast Guard Director General stressed the need to bring the islands under the Ocean Property Regime.

Prof. S.P. Thyagarajan, Vice-Chancellor, University of Madras, called for frequent interaction between academicians and the defence forces, especially the Coast Guard authorities.

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