Bangladesh Coast Guard

The Bangladesh Navy had been performing the duties of a Coast Guard in addition to its own duties of maritime defense since 1994. As time passed, the growing responsibility and workload became inconvenient for the Bangladesh Navy, with the increasing volume of policing duties at sea taking away from its primary role. The emergence of the Bangladesh Coast Guard was the result of the growing awareness in the Government for the requirement of a separate service to enforce national laws in the waters under national jurisdiction and ensure safety of life and property at sea. Following this the Coast Guard Act 1994 was passed by the Parliament in September 1994. Formally the Bangladesh Coast Guard in its present shape came into being on 14 February 1995 and started operational activities with two patrol craft received from Bangladesh Navy. The force is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Home Affairs.

The Bangladesh Coast Guard motto is 'Guardian at Sea'.

The Bangladesh Coast Guard is a unique force that carries out an array of civil and military responsibilities touching almost every facet of the Bangladesh maritime environment. The Headquarters of Bangladesh Coast Guard in Agargaon, Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, Dhaka-1207 and four Zones (Dhaka, Chittagong, Mongla

and Bhola.[1][3]

Bangladesh Coast Guard unit marching in Victory Day Parade.

Over 90% of Bangladesh exports and imports pass through two seaports at Chittagong and Mongla. Sea-lines communication to these two seaports are the lifelines of the Bangladesh economy. UNCLOS 1982 has made provision for sovereign rights for exploration and exploitation of living and non-living resources in the Bangladesh EEZ. The fishery sector contributes an important part of national export earnings. A significant quantity of gas has been discovered at Sangu in the Bay of Bengal, the extraction of which has already started. Apart from these, a vast number of ships and craft of various types and sizes operate at sea for trade, commerce, fishing, research, exploration and extraction of oil, gas and minerals and so on. To exercise effective control, to ensure safety and security and protect national and international maritime interest at sea, all these diverse activities are brought under various national and international laws and acts.

The area of jurisdiction of the Bangladesh Coast Guard is the sea territory of Bangladesh as declared under the Territorial and Maritime Zone Act, 1974. The Bangladesh Government being a signatory has ratified UNCLOS, 1982.

Areas of Jurisdiction in the Bay of Bengal are:

• Internal Waters
• Territorial Water
• Contiguous Zone
• Exclusive Economic Zone
• Continental Shelf

Apart from the sea territory of Bangladesh, the government has also placed the waterways of the mangrove forest of Sundarban and major rivers up to Dhaka under the jurisdiction of the Coast Guard.

The Bangladesh Coast Guard has the following zonal command: Dhaka, East, West and South zones .

The Bangladesh government has started a massive modernization plan named Coast Guard Goal 2030 to make Coast Guard a well-trained and well-equipped force to ensure the security of the coastal area. The expansion of the force manpower is also included in the plan.

Dockyard and Engineering Works Limited is constructing two inshore patrol vessels (IPV) for the Bangladesh Coast Guard. These vessels will be 52.8 meters long, 7.4 meters wide and have a draught of 4.5 meters with a displacement of 315 tonnes.

Coast guard ordered six X12 high-speed boats which are being built at Dockyard and Engineering Works Limited with technical assistance from Indonesia. These ships are made of carbon composite and have a length of 11.7 metres (38 ft) and a speed of 35 knots (65 km/h; 40 mph).

In October 2021, Bangladesh Coast Guard has ordered undisclosed number of Turkish-made ARES 150 HERCULES Offshore Patrol Vessels.[6]

The formation of Coast Guard aviation wing is under process. The force has a plan to procure 10 helicopters for patrolling and search and rescue (SAR) operations within 2025.[7]

Coast guard also wants to be a technologically advanced outfit in monitoring the sea. It has a long-term plan of installing Long-range identification and tracking (LRIT) and Vessel Traffic Management Information System (VTMIS) systems by 2025.[7]

• Bangladesh Coast Guard Website