Ahead of Republic Day celebrations, the Delhi Police has heightened vigil and arrested six people along with 12 pistols and 75 live cartridges in separate operations this week, officials said on Friday.

The force has deployed a large number of personnel and is carrying out round-the-clock patrolling and vehicle checking. The special cell of the force has been carrying out drives against arms trafficking ahead of Republic Day celebrations.

 In a special drive, the special cell three firearms suppliers, including a former state-level athlete, and seized 12 semi-automatic pistols from their possession.

 “We received secret information that a member of a Madhya Pradesh-based firearms dealer, Pushpendra Singh, would come to Kalindi Kunj Road on January 7 to deliver firearms to his associates,” Special Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) HGS Dhaliwal said.

 The police laid a trap and arrested Singh and two others -- Naeem and Manish Bhati -- who had come to receive the consignments.  “We recovered a total of 12 pistols from them. It was revealed that Singh was a state-level athlete and participated in an event at the junior level in 2015,” the police officer said.

 In another operation, the Delhi Police arrested 22-year-old Ehti Sham-ul, a resident of Pilibhit in Uttar Pradesh, during a vehicle check near the ITO bridge on Wednesday.  He was carrying 45 live cartridges that have been seized, the police said.

 In a separate operation conducted by the north district police, two criminals were nabbed when they were receiving 12 pistols and 30 live cartridges from an arms smuggler from Meerut region. However, the smuggler who was delivering the consignment fled from the spot.

 A senior police officer said the seizure of 75 live cartridges and 24 pistols just before the Republic Day parade is a matter of concern.

 “More than 8,000 personnel, including senior police officers, are keeping strict vigil everyday ahead of Republic Day. To ensure prompt and effective response, in case of any sabotage or exigency, the police are conducting mock drills on a regular basis,” the officer said.