The Indian Navy will carry out aerial surveillance of the city’s coastal regions to prevent possible infiltration along the lines of the 26/11 terror attack, the Mumbai Police said.

The Coast Guard and the Navy have already launched a massive joint operation, patrolling the coast. It will continue on Tuesday.

“There is no specific terror threat but all precautions are being taken. We have approached the Coast Guard, the Navy and the Indian Air Force. The Navy and the Coast Guard are engaged in a big coastal policing exercise, and the Navy has also started aerial surveillance of coastal areas in the city with its choppers. We are also talking to the Indian Air Force requesting aerial surveillance,” said Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Himanshu Roy.

“Since 90 per cent of the police force will be engaged in election duties, the city can become a soft target. We want to ensure that there is no infiltration from the sea as in the case of the 26/11 terror attack,” said Roy.

The 8,600 polling booths have been divided into 1,200 zones, with 93 vulnerable pockets and 136 critical polling stations identified in Mumbai.

“There will be booth-wise police bandobast. Central paramilitary forces and state reserve police forces will supplement the police force. A total of 950 patrolling mobiles fitted with wireless sets will be out in the city, and we hope to respond to any distress call within five minutes,” said Roy.

District Collector (Mumbai City) Idzes Kundan said the Colaba-to-Sion-Dharavi area has 46 vulnerable hamlets and 53 critical polling stations. “Substantial security has been provided,” she said. “Vulnerable hamlets are those areas from where we expect some trouble and we have demarcated the polling stations in those hamlets as critical.”

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