In a continuing effort to develop fishing communities along the coast into ‘eyes and ears’ for security forces, a team of twenty personnel of the Coast Guard, Marine Police and Department of Fisheries set off on motorcycles from Raj Bhavan in Kolkata on Thursday for an expedition that will conclude on Tuesday. The expedition, flagged off by West Bengal governor Keshari Nath Tripathi, will visit remote fishing hamlets along the West Bengal and Odisha coastline, organize health camps and tell fishermen what to look out for to prevent any sea-borne attack on lines of the 26/11 Mumbai strike. The event has been organized by the Coast Guard Region (North East) and commander/IG K S Sheoran was present when the bikers were flagged off. India has a long coastline that is difficult to secure. Nearly 37 years before the Mumbai terror strike, in 1971, Pakistani submarine PNS Ghazi was prowling along India’s eastern coast for days. After Ghazi’s destruction, it came to be known that its crew had actually landed in rubber dinghies along the coast to replenish food supplies and also interacted with fishermen. The local population had no clue of the implications of having a Pakistani submarine lurking around so close to the Indian coast. “Fishing communities are extremely crucial in ensuring coastal security. To enhance goodwill, medical camps will be held,” a senior official said.