The Indian Navy and the Coast Guard have stepped up their vigil against pirates. Giving this information in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today, the External Affairs Minister, Mr. S M Krishna said the Indian Navy has made additional deployments off the eastern and north eastern Arabian Sea. He said the Indian Coast Guard is carrying out regular surveillance by deploying Indian Coast Guard ships and aircraft to create deterrence as well as build confidence in the minds of merchant men. He said the joint surveillance operations by navy and coast guard, which began from 13th of December 2010, were extended till 31st of this month. Mr. Krishna said Somali pirates are operating further and further off the Somali Coast. Stating that a few recent incidents of piracy have taken place about 250 nautical miles away from the Indian coast, the Minister said the shift in attacks to the south and east of the Indian Ocean could be due to the pirates trying to bypass the security corridor established by International naval forces in the Gulf of Aden. He said the pirates have developed significant support structures whereby they are able to hold hijacked ships and crews hostage for months while holding negotiations for ransom.