Africa-Press – Mauritius. A total of 49 specialist personnel of the Mauritius Police Force (MPF) were awarded certificates, today at the Coast Guard Training School in Le Chaland, for having successfully completed the 13th edition of the annual Commando and Diving Refresher course.
The Commissioner of Police, Mr Anil Kumar Dip; the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations), Mr Mardaymootoo Rassen; the Commandant of the National Coast Guard (NCG), Mr Vipin Gupta; personnel of the Indian Naval (IN); and other personalities were present at the closing ceremony.
The training is a joint collaboration of the MPF and the IN which comprised the Commando and the Diving Refresher course. It aims to enhance the capabilities of the personnel of the MPF and engender coordination among the various units of the MPF.
Thirty personnel from NCG Commando, Special Mobile Force (SMF), Special Supporting Unit (SSU), Groupement d’Intervention de la Police Mauricienne (GIPM), and Very Important Person Security Unit (VIPSU) have been trained in advanced close quarter battle, maritime intervention operations, hostage rescue drills, explosive handling, and demolition.
As for the diving refresher course, 19 personnel from the NCG, SMF, and Police Helicopter Squadron were trained in mixture gas diving, operation of underwater remotely operated vehicles, salvage operations, surface decompression, and explosive ordinance disposal.
In his address, the Commissioner of Police congratulated the participants for undergoing the three weeks extensive training. The cooperation in the maritime domain which extends from training to joint operation at sea is one of the largest bilateral intervention between IN and the MPF, he said.
As at now, 200 divers and 300 commandos have been trained and the scale of this engagement reflects the time-tested relationship between MPF and IN, he stressed.
Commissioner Dip added that the course offers an opportunity to the specialist personnel of the MPF to be trained and qualified in the latest equipment and tactics in operations and diving.
The training has also enabled personnel of different units to come together and flawlessly execute operations, he underscored. Moreover, Commissioner Dip underlined that maritime safety and security is a key concern of Government as Mauritius is an island nation and 99% of its trade is by sea route.
The MPF, in line with Government vision of cooperative and collaborative approach, has been working closely with IN towards capacity building and capacity enhancement to better protect the country’s maritime zone, he highlighted.
The Commissioner further stressed that divers play a crucial role in disaster response adding that the training will help the MPF in improving service delivery to the public.
Mauritius, he pointed out, can henceforth undertake boarding on vessels with freeboard of upto 18 metres. The collaboration, he further underpinned, is a sign of the endearing trust between the two countries to organise such complex training.
He expressed satisfaction that the training will boost the participants’ confidence in operations and improve interoperability thus allowing them to address contingencies jointly.
Mr Dip expressed his gratitude to the IN for coming up with the tailor-made training course which, according to him, will help in further strengthening cooperation between the MPF and the IN.
For More News And Analysis About Mauritius Follow Africa-Press
