(a) whether security arrangements are in adequate at Calcutta International Airport in view of growing incidents of hijacking of aeroplane;
(b) if so, the reasons therefor;
(c) whether the Government have decided to step up security arrangements at the International Airports including Calcutta International Airport; and
(d) if so, the details thereof?
THE MINISTER OF CIVIL AVIATION
(SHRI SHARAD YADAV)
(a) & (b) Security arrangements at airports in India,
including at Calcutta airport, are in accordance with the
standards and recommended practices laid down in Annex 17 to
the Convention on International Civil Aviation (Chicago)
1944 and the International Civil Aviation Organisation
Security Manual.
(c) & (d) After the recent incident of hijacking, following
measures have been taken to further beef up security
arrangements at the airports:
i)Deployment of Central Industrial Security Force(CISF)
personnel in place of State Police for security duties at
the operational airports in a phased manner. The CISF has
already taken over the security duties at Patna, Jaipur,
Guwahati, Vadodara and Port Blair airports.
ii)Frisking of passengers and hand baggage at the time of
entry into sterile area has been tightened. Ladder point
secondary frisking has been introduced.
iii)Strict control on access to the airports is being
ensured by comprehensive review of Photo Identity Cards to
restrict the number of pass-holders and banning of entry of
the visitors upto 31.3.2000.
iv)Deployment of Sky Marshals on flights at random basis as
an added safety precaution.
v)Raising of the perimeter wall to the prescribed height at
all the operational airports.
vi)Replacement of old X-Ray machines and installation of new
colour X-Ray machines wherever necessary so as to ensure
that atleast two X-Ray machines are available at every
point.
vii)Modernisation and upgradation of security related
technological set up at the airports is being done in a
phased manner.