The CISF will soon provide security cover to 30 new civil airports, even as the paramilitary has embarked on a major project to integrate the security system and gadgets, at 59 other such installations across the country.
The force has also begun securing the cargo terminals at nine major airports — including IGIA, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru — in view of the looming terror threat. It is looking for some state-of-the-art gadgets like alarm emitting CCTVs to ensure that not even a blink escapes from the eyes of its proposed integrated security system.“We have plans to go to 30 more airports in the country which are in the civil domain. We are already securing 59. But the most important thing that we would be doing in the near future is to integrate our security devices and standardising our airport security gadgets across the country,” CISF director general (DG) Arvind Ranjan told the media here.
Ranjan said the aim of the force is to have all its security protocols and gadget operations in a state of absolute preparedness and in sync with the training that is given to its personnel for airport security tasks.“All the airports under our cover, big or small, should have one standard while working on the security platform. Our boys should be comfortable in using all the gadgets deployed in airport security. We have this task on mind for the future too,” he said.
The force has already approached the Airports Authority of India (AAI) for a meeting to standardise security protocols and equipment. Meanwhile, the force has begun providing marine commando security cover at the Paradip port in Odisha. The move comes five years after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks following which ambitious plans were made to thwart sea-borne terror attacks on vital installations. The port is one of the most important and sensitive sea cargo facilities in eastern part of India and is located near the confluence of river Mahanadi in the Bay of Bengal.
A unit of 30 trained commandos of CISF has begun patrolling in the offshore sea waters that touch the facility. The port authorities have provided the CISF a fast patrol vessel for conducting sea-borne surveillance missions. This is the first marine commando squad of CISF which has gone sea-borne even as it guards about a dozen other ports like the JNPT in Mumbai and Mundra in Gujarat.