<p>During the patrol, the aircraft also sighted the pirate mother ship Prantalay, which was chased away by Navy and Coast Guard vessels from the same area about a month ago, Navy officials said here.<br /><br />"A Coast Guard Dornier on routine patrol located two white colour skiffs in the vicinity of a merchant vessel MV CMA CGM Berdi. The aircraft descended and passed over the skiffs and chased them away in the morning," they added.<br /><br />Because of the timely arrival of the aircraft the merchant vessel is now safe and heading for its next destination in East Asia, they said.<br /><br />After a spurt in piracy-related incidents, in the last two months the Navy and the Coast Guard have been maintaining an increased vigil west of the Lakshadweep Islands for pirate boats.<br /><br />The suspicious Thailand-registered mother vessel, officials said, continues to be monitored by Navy and Coast Guard units.<br /><br />As part of its efforts to counter piracy and enhance coastal security, Defence Minister A K Antony last month commissioned a Coast Guard district headquarters in Kavaratti and a station in Minicoy, both in the Lakshadweep Islands.<br /><br />In the recent past, activities of pirates around Lakshadweep have increased and they were also successful in hijacking a Bangladeshi-flagged merchant vessel about 90 nautical miles off Kochi and 80 nautical miles off Minicoy.<br /><br />Due to this spurt in pirate activity, the navy had deployed its warships along with Coast Guard vessels in the central Arabian sea.<br /><br />India has also been deploying its frigates and destroyers in the Gulf of Aden since November 2008 and maintains its presence in the troubled waters since then.</p>
<p>During the patrol, the aircraft also sighted the pirate mother ship Prantalay, which was chased away by Navy and Coast Guard vessels from the same area about a month ago, Navy officials said here.<br /><br />"A Coast Guard Dornier on routine patrol located two white colour skiffs in the vicinity of a merchant vessel MV CMA CGM Berdi. The aircraft descended and passed over the skiffs and chased them away in the morning," they added.<br /><br />Because of the timely arrival of the aircraft the merchant vessel is now safe and heading for its next destination in East Asia, they said.<br /><br />After a spurt in piracy-related incidents, in the last two months the Navy and the Coast Guard have been maintaining an increased vigil west of the Lakshadweep Islands for pirate boats.<br /><br />The suspicious Thailand-registered mother vessel, officials said, continues to be monitored by Navy and Coast Guard units.<br /><br />As part of its efforts to counter piracy and enhance coastal security, Defence Minister A K Antony last month commissioned a Coast Guard district headquarters in Kavaratti and a station in Minicoy, both in the Lakshadweep Islands.<br /><br />In the recent past, activities of pirates around Lakshadweep have increased and they were also successful in hijacking a Bangladeshi-flagged merchant vessel about 90 nautical miles off Kochi and 80 nautical miles off Minicoy.<br /><br />Due to this spurt in pirate activity, the navy had deployed its warships along with Coast Guard vessels in the central Arabian sea.<br /><br />India has also been deploying its frigates and destroyers in the Gulf of Aden since November 2008 and maintains its presence in the troubled waters since then.</p>