Gandhinagar (Gujarat) [India], November 24 (ANI): The Indian Coast Guard has commenced the two-day National Level Pollution Response Exercise (NATPOLREX-lX) from Friday at Vadinar in the Gulf of Kutch, Gujarat. The exercise will conclude on Saturday.

The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) has embarked on the 9th edition of the National Level Pollution Response Exercise-IX (NATPOLREX-IX) off the Vadinar coast, in line with the National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan (NOS-DCP). The exercise is a critical initiative that tests various facets of marine pollution response mechanisms and assesses the readiness of resource agencies to tackle any marine spill contingencies, according to a Coast Guard official.

Director General Rakesh Pal and other senior officers are attending the exercise along with other stakeholders responsible for fighting pollution in the seas.

Meanwhile, the India Coast Guard recently conducted a 2-day Coastal Security exercise Sagar Kavach, on November 21-23, for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to evaluate the preparedness and response mechanisms of all the stakeholders in the coastal security mechanism.

The Indian Coast Guard conducted the eighth edition of the National Level Pollution Response Exercise, codenamed NATPOLREX-VIII, from April 19-20, 2022, off Mormugao Harbour, Goa.

The eighth edition of the National Level Pollution Response Exercise was attended by more than 85 participants from 50 agencies, which included 29 foreign observers from 22 friendly foreign countries and international organisations and two Coast Guard ships from Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. (ANI)