By IANS
Lucknow : Almost three decades after a plane hijack in Lucknow, a mock hijack drill sent cops and officials in a tizzy, but they all soon proved their preparedness, a top official said Monday.
Masterminded by the National Security Guard (NSG), the drill on an otherwise quiet Sunday afternoon was a secret exercise carried out by taking only two officials into confidence – the state’s Principal Home Secretary J.N. Chamber and Lucknow airport director S.D. Awasthi.
Even the director general of police was not aware of the real purpose behind the red-alert that was sounded.
“The idea was to check the alertness of all those who would be involved in a real life emergency like that – so we kept the whole exercise a closely guarded secret. What is heartening is that everyone has proved himself,” Chamber told IANS here Monday.
The exercise began with a flash from the Lucknow Air Traffic Control (ATC) to the state home secretary about a hijacked aircraft being brought to Lucknow.
“Hijackers have killed two passengers on board and are going to land in at Lucknow’s Amousi aerodrome,” was the message that put everyone on his toes.
Promptly the message was passed on to all concerned officials – the district magistrate, the Special Task Force, the senior superintendent of police, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) which is responsible for airport security, the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC), the chief fire officer, the chief medical officer and the top brass of the state police.
The special aerodrome security committee, headed by the principal home secretary, also convened its emergency meeting within 40 minutes of the flash by the ATC.
Fully satisfied with the response to the first such exercise here, Chamber said, “It was really incredible that everyone connected directly or indirectly with a serious contingency like plan hijack was in place strictly within the prescribed time frame.”