Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Ito Naoki on Monday officially handed over more than 20 ten-meter rescue boats and four 20-meter boats with oil pollution control equipment, provided by the JICA project, to Bangladesh Coast Guard.
Lieutenant Commander Khandaker Munif Taki, media officer of Bangladesh Coast Guard Headquarters, confirmed the matter to the media.
He said, “Bangladesh Coast Guard started its journey on February 14, 1995 to ensure the overall security of Bangladesh's maritime boundaries.”
“Since its inception, Coast Guard has been successfully conserving marine resources, curbing smuggling in coastal areas, controlling drug dealing, protecting forest resources, preventing the extinction of Jatka and mother Hilsa and preventing human trafficking. The organisation has also been conducting rescue and relief operations during any accidents and natural calamities,” he added.
The media officer said that the 20 ten-meter rescue boats were handed over to Bangladesh Coast Guard by JICA (Japan International Corporation Agency) in different stages to make this success more dynamic.
“According to the latest progress, four 20-meter rescue boats with oil pollution control equipment were handed over to the Bangladesh Coast Guard on Monday,” he said.
He further said, “We hope that the operational activities of the Coast Guard will be further accelerated with the addition of these boats to the Bangladesh Coast Guard fleet. It is also expected that the Coast Guard will play a leading role in controlling oil pollution in the coastal areas in future through the integration of oil pollution control equipment into the force.”
Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Ito Naoki was present as the Chief Guest and Director General of Coast Guard Rear Admiral Ashraful Haque Chowdhury was present as special guest at the programme held at Coast Guard Base in Chattogram.
