"It is possible that the Pakistani authorities may have examined the helicopter," he said in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha. Antony had been asked whether the data saved in various instruments in the helicopter could have fallen into Pakistani hands.
He informed the House that the Defence Ministry has taken proper precaution to change the codes in the chopper. An Indian Army helicopter carrying four of its personnel was forced to land in Pakistani territory after it strayed into Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) on October 23. The chopper was on its way to Bhimbhat from Leh.
The Cheetah helicopter along with the crew was allowed to fly back to its base in Kargil less than five hours after the incident.
Replying to another question on the possibility of terrorist threat through the sea routes, the Defence Minister said, "There are no specific inputs from Multi Agency Centres regarding terrorist threats through sea routes."
On security preparedness in the coastal area, he said, "A coastal security ring all along our coast is provided by the Marine police, Indian Coast Guard and Indian Navy. Government has initiated several measures to strengthen coastal security, which includes improving surveillance mechanism and enhanced petrolling by following an integrated approach.
