The terror attack at Pathankot Air Force base in Punjab early on Saturday morning should be a wake-up call for the government as the security personnel deployed at the Gannavaram airport are ill-equipped to handle such incidents.
At least half-a-dozen VVIPs, bureaucrats and other dignitaries are flying in and out of Vijayawada and upcoming capital region everyday attending meetings and other programmes.
Industrialists and foreigners are also coming in good numbers to enquire about business prospects. In addition, the chopper being used by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu to visit districts is parked at the airport. But the policemen at Gannavaram airport are not trained to deal with terrorist strikes, according to officials.
They said the State government has to rely on OCTOPUS and National Security Guards (NSG), both stationed in Hyderabad in case of any such eventuality.
As many as 200 police personnel are working on shift basis from 5 a.m. to 9.p.m. Armed with Self-Loading Rifle (SLR) and 9 mm carbines, the policemen are posted at the apron, VIP area, main entrance and other strategic locations in and around the airport.
A senior official said the existing policemen were trained in tackling extremist attacks only. Sources said the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel will soon start guarding Gannavaram airport instead of city police, who are presently handling the security duties. Representatives from the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) and the CISF Southern Command jointly conducted an inspection of the airport last year and took stock of the situation.
04/01/16 M Srinivas/The Hindu
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At least half-a-dozen VVIPs, bureaucrats and other dignitaries are flying in and out of Vijayawada and upcoming capital region everyday attending meetings and other programmes.
Industrialists and foreigners are also coming in good numbers to enquire about business prospects. In addition, the chopper being used by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu to visit districts is parked at the airport. But the policemen at Gannavaram airport are not trained to deal with terrorist strikes, according to officials.
They said the State government has to rely on OCTOPUS and National Security Guards (NSG), both stationed in Hyderabad in case of any such eventuality.
As many as 200 police personnel are working on shift basis from 5 a.m. to 9.p.m. Armed with Self-Loading Rifle (SLR) and 9 mm carbines, the policemen are posted at the apron, VIP area, main entrance and other strategic locations in and around the airport.
A senior official said the existing policemen were trained in tackling extremist attacks only. Sources said the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel will soon start guarding Gannavaram airport instead of city police, who are presently handling the security duties. Representatives from the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) and the CISF Southern Command jointly conducted an inspection of the airport last year and took stock of the situation.
04/01/16 M Srinivas/The Hindu
