Armed men near naval base; alert in Mumbai

The men were wearing black clothes. The suspicious men were spotted by school children in the Uran area of Maharashtra. A high alert has been sounded at the Naval ammunition depot INS Abhimanyu, which is opposite the Mumbai harbour. Police mounted a search for them at once. 

According to Indian Navy Chief PRO Capt DK Sharma, the search operation was carried along with Maharashtra police after the matter came to light. The Western Naval Command (WNC) issued “the highest state of alert” along the Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane and Raigad coasts after suspicious movement of a group was reported in Uran. The WNC has roped-in the police and Coast Guard also for the task. According to initial information received by the authorities, four school students spotted a group of people dressed in uniform similar to that of Indian Army near Uran and Karanja area.

The DGP office immediately issued alerts to all police stations along the coast. Security has been beefed up at sensitive locations along the coast, including the Gateway of India, Raj Bhawan, Bombay High (rig), Bhabha Atomic Research Centre and other major establishments near the sea. 

This comes close on the heels of the Uri terror attack. On Sunday, heavily armed terrorists attacked an Indian Army camp in Jammu and Kashmir, killing 18 soldiers and injuring many others. All four terrorists were neutralised by the security forces. India has squarely blamed Pakistan for the terrorist attack, attacking it for being a ‘sponsor of terror’. Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar on Tuesday summoned Pakistan’s High Commissioner to India, Abdul Basit, over the attack.