A "suspicious" Pakistan buoy, which was seen in Indian waters near the Revdanda coast in Maharashtra's Raigad a day ago, had no person onboard and an inquiry had been launched into the case, Maharashtra minister Yogesh Kadam said on Tuesday.

“A part of the Pakistani ship, a buoy, was missing, and it drifted into the Indian waters due to sea currents. No one has entered our borders. Our coast guard security is quite competent, and we are definitely alert. Inquiry is underway,” the minister said.

This follows the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) Security in New Delhi informing the Coast Guard in Murud that a Pakistani boat called 'Muqadar Boya 99' was visible nearly 2.5 to 3 nautical miles in the Arabian Sea off the Korlai coast, the Raigad district police mentioned in a statement.

The Maharashtra Police has strengthened security along the Raigad coastline after they got to know from the ICG on July 6 that a "suspicious object" was noticed near the Korlai coast in the jurisdiction of Raigad district police.

The Raigad Police, Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS), Quick Response Team (QRT), the Navy and the Coast Guard teams reached the spot after being aware of the incident. The Raigad police stated, “Upon receiving the intel, the Superintendent of Police (SP) along with Additional SP, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), and other related officers rushed to the given coordinates without delay.”

Search operations at sea were conducted with support from the ICG, utilising their vessels. Additionally, the police coordinated with the Indian Navy, Customs, Maharashtra Maritime Board, and Fisheries Department to gather further intelligence and ramp up the search for the suspicious boat.

The Fisheries and Forest Departments of Alibag carried out drone surveillance in the Korlai coastal region, while marine patrolling was stepped up. According to the Raigad Police, the Coast Guard also conducted aerial reconnaissance using helicopters.

To bolster security and prevent any possible infiltration or sabotage via the sea route, the Raigad Police positioned 52 officers and 554 constables across multiple teams as part of the operation.

Meanwhile, the Navi Mumbai Police Commissionerate was put on alert and ordered to enhance vigilance and hold thorough inspections. Police also issued warnings to units in neighbouring districts, the statement further said.

The Raigad Police said that, according to information received, the "suspicious object" spotted in Indian waters is likely a fishing net buoy fitted with a GPS tracker, used to prevent nets from sinking and facilitate retrieval.

The ICG said that the object, suspected as a boat transponder or buoy with Automatic Identification System (AIS) transponder, possibly drifted into Indian waters due to sea currents.

On January 3 this year, a similar incident had taken place when a buoy was discovered in Gujarat's Okha.

(With inputs from ANI)