Port Blair, November 12: The Lt Governor, Lt Gen A K Singh (Retd), today met the Union Minister of Defence, Shri Manohar Parrikar at Raj Niwas. Various issues relating to the safety and security of A & N Islands were discussed. Welcoming the Raksha Mantri, the Lt Governor sought the intervention of the Defence Minister on the issue of conveyance of civilian passengers in Defence aircraft. He observed that Great Nicobar being the remotest Island on the Southern tip, the local population has to undergo considerable inconvenience while travelling to Port Blair for various necessities, including medical requirements. The helicopter service, operating on this route is grossly inadequate to meet the requirement, as the Pawan Hans helicopter carries only 3 passengers to Campbell Bay due to distance involved and the limited payload capacity. Based on A & N Administration’s request, Ministry of Defence has conveyed approval to provide regular services of IAF Dornier aircraft between Port Blair and Campbell Bay, twice a week, for transporting civilian but due to shortage of aircrafts, the Andaman & Nicobar Command has expressed its inability to commence the service immediately. The Lt Governor requested the intervention of the Defence Minister on this issue.
Another important issue on which the Lt Governor has sought the intervention of the Minister is construction of Civil Air Terminal at Car Nicobar IAF airfield. He observed that a proposal for setting up of Civil Air Enclave at IAF station Car Nicobar was submitted to A & N Command which envisages construction of Civil Apron, passenger waiting hall and Hangar, adjacent to IAF station on the land already made available by the Tribal Council for this purpose. The proposal has been forwarded to Air Head Quarter for issuance of No Objection Certificate, he said and is pending since January 2014.
Similarly, other issues raised before the Minister include capability build up of Andaman Nicobar Command (ANC). For the ground presence capabilities, the Lt Governor stressed the need for deployment of one additional TA Battalion for the Army. This has been pending in Finance and needs immediate approval as this would also generate employment for the youth of the islands. Extension of runways at Shibpur and Campbell Bay on a fast track basis was also raised by the Lt Governor before the Minister. He also suggested that the ANC should share the load of presence on remote outer islands, which is presently borne only by the Andaman Police. Surveillance of the Western Coast was also highlighted.
