Security tightened at Taj Mahal
Security cover at the Delhi Metro has been stepped up after intelligence reports of possible terror strikes even as the alert level at the Taj Mahal continues to be high, a top official said yesterday.
“The security at Taj Mahal has been on high alert. Bur we have allowed visitors to carry mobile phones now. Spy cameras are in place as a precaution,” S Ahmed, director general of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), told reporters here.
The security at the 17th century monument was stepped up in June 2006 after a renewed terrorist threat. In October, the Supreme Court had asked the Uttar Pradesh government to file a comprehensive affidavit explaining its contingency plan on security.
The CISF chief said that Delhi Metro remained a soft target and had been placed under high security alert following intelligence reports.
“Delhi Metro is a soft militant target. We will be completely taking over its security from Delhi Police from April 15,” Ahmed said at the force’s annual press conference.
“The strength of our women security personnel at Delhi Metro would also be enhanced,” he said, ahead of the 38th CISF Day here on March 10 when President A P J Abdul Kalam will review a parade of the force.
The CISF chief also said a new, multi-layered security concept would be launched at the Delhi Metro in which passengers will be allowed entry from two channels - red and green.
Once passengers pass through a certain security apparatus without triggering an alarm and without raising suspicion from the closed circuit cameras at vantage points, they will be allowed easy access through the green channel, he said.
Others would have to undergo another level of screening under the red channel and may also undergo interrogation when necessary, he added.
“These intelligence cameras will not be ordinary ones. They are sophisticated gadgets, which will themselves identify the suspects based on their behaviour as also the data fed by CISF,” Ahmed said.
Other equipment that will be deployed at the Delhi Metro include explosives and bio-metric detectors. “All these steps have been taken in the light of the bomb blasts in London.”
CISF was formed in 1969 with about 3,000 personnel to primarily provide security to India’s state-run industrial units. Today, it has moved to other areas such as airports, government buildings, nuclear stations, oil rigs and museums monuments, as well as VIP security and disaster management.
Its 105,000 personnel provide security cover to 269 government establishments, including 54 domestic and international airports, and fire protection to 77 undertakings.
Meanwhile, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which currently guards 54 airports across the country, will extend its cover to eight more airbases, including the Srinagar airport, following terror threats. “After the central government’s decision on security for more airbases, we will be providing our services to eight more airports, including the very sensitive ones at Srinagar and Leh,” CISF director general S.I.S. Ahmed told reporters here Wednesday.
Various central security agencies would partner the CISF in maintaining the Srinagar airport’s security.
“The six other airports to be manned by us are at Gorakhpur, Bhavnagar, Dehra-dun, Jamnagar, Porbandhar and Shillong,” he added.
Last year, airports across the country went on high alert 42 times after intelligence agencies warned about possible aircraft hijacks from various airports, including the busy Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi.
“In lieu of the increasing threats, CISF has decided to upgrade security mechanisms and infrastructure at the airports,” Ahmed said.
The CISF is also planning t//o install biometric systems, anti-hijacking devices, inculcate over 45 dogs squads, additional X-ray machines at the various airports as part of its security apparatus.
The CISF is currently guarding 54 airports, including the newly privatised ones at Delhi and Mumbai, besides several sensitive government installations.