8 months on, CISF plan for security at airport awaits nod

Chennai: The Central Industrial Security Force's (CISF) proposal for a counter-terrorism squad at Chennai airport is awaiting a response nearly eight months after it was submitted to the the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. This delay in approval reveals the attitude of the centre in safeguarding security interests in the south, sources here told The Times Of India. The MHA has also paid scant attention to the CISF's severe manpower shortage at Chennai airport and the force has been working with just 60% of sanctioned strength for three years, sources said.
"At present vehicle entry and exit points, the parking areas and the airport surroundings are under the control of the local police. These have to be under CISF's security cover. We call this squad a counter-terrorism' team. A proposal for setting up this squad at the Chennai airport was submitted to the MHA around 8 months ago. But we are yet to hear anything on it," a senior CISF official said.
According to sources, control over the vehicle entry, exit and parking areas is crucial for the airport's overall security. "The local police are not professionally trained to combat terror. Our personnel have better training and also sophisticated weapons. Moreover, we need to have our men in these places for providing multi-tier security. These points have to be under constant surveillance. The local police step up security at these points only on the basis of general terror alerts," another official said. CISF, Chennai, in its proposal, had sought 300 personnel for the squad. "So far, not a single person has been given to us for this," the official added.
23/06/09 K Praveen Kumar/Times of India

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Categories: Airports Jun 2009, Safety Jun 2009