Gandhinagar, Nov 24 : The registration of all the 423 fishing boats registered in Gujarat and now in Pakistani custody has been cancelled for security reasons, according to official sources Tuesday.

According to the sources, these 423 fishing boats were registered with various ports in the state but had been seized by Pakistani marine security agencies from mid-sea and were at present in their possession.

This decision was taken at the behest of the central security agency concerned to minimise the risk of these boats being used to enter Indian territorial waters.

A Porbandar registered fishing boat "Kuber" was seized mid-sea and used by terrorists to reach Mumbai and carry out the Nov 26, 2008, attacks in the city.

The 26/11 attacks led to a review of coastal security and the decision to de-register the boats seized by Pakistan is one of many to plug loopholes that helped easy access to Indian shores by terrorists.(IANS)