NEW DELHI, Feb. 1 (UPI) --
India's Coast Guard says the Sethusamudram project in the Indian Ocean would be a security threat.
The Sethusamudram, a canal being dug to shorten the distance between the western and eastern seacoast of India, has been hit with controversy as Hindu nationalists want the government to drop the project.
Coast Guard Director General Vice Admiral Rusi Contractor said he has already conveyed to the government the project would be a security risk.
"It (Sethusamudram) is a major project. The government has taken our views. There are security threats. There are ramifications," he said.
"It is a maritime area. Security issues are bound to arise by virtue of the close boundary line between India and Sri Lanka," he said, adding if a freeway canal were opened for ships for transit, there could be piracy there.
Contractor said there was also the problem of close proximity to a neighboring country where a conflict is raging, like Sri Lanka. He said if the channel created by the Sethusamudram project is narrow, it could also lead to navigational hazards, like the threat of collisions between naval vessels.© 2008 United Press International. All Rights Reserved.
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