CISF personnel to take over Metro security

New Delhi, July 27: The Union Home Ministry has cleared a proposal to hand over the security of the Delhi Metro to the Central Industrial Security Force(CISF), in the wake of the Mumbai blasts which exposed the high vulnerability of rail networks to terror attacks.

''We are awaiting orders for the deployment of our forces,'' CISF sources told UNI here today.

A high-level meeting of officials of the Home Ministry and the CISF early this week decided to deploy 1,633 CISF personnel in the metro stations in the capital city.

Sources said the CISF had conducted a survey on the requirement of manpower. The survey projected the need for a total of 3266 personnel for an effective security system in the existing metro network. But the strength sanctioned now constituted only 50 per cent of the projected manpower requirement.

Though the clearance was given for deployment of 1633 personnel, the ministry had appointed a committee to evaluate the actual manpower required from the remaining 50 per cent projected by the survey.

''This committee will submit its report within one month.'' The CISF had submitted its report long ago. However, it was the July 11 Mumbai blasts that prompted the government to take expeditious action.

The sources said the CISF, the professional security agency which has been manning the most critical infrastructures, already had metro-specific personnel trained in most sophisticated gadgets, including biometric gadgets.

The personnel were trained in access control, frisking and exposives detection.

Once the CISF takes over the security, the Delhi Police which is currently in charge of overall security of the metro rail network will be pulled out. At present, only 700 men from Delhi police are guarding the 59 stations of the mass transit system, stretching over 62 kms. The sources said the deployment of CISF personnel was expected to be completed before August 15 (Independence Day), when a high security alert is sounded.

The CISF has also projected the demand for a lot of sophisticated gadgets for access control. They are expected to be in place within six months.

They said a decision on who would bear the cost of deployment of CISF in metro stations was yet to be decided. ''It is not known whether the Delhi government, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, Railway Ministry of the Ministry of Home Affairs would bear the cost.'' Besides guarding industrial and vital installations like ISRO, the CISF personnel have been manning about 55 airports in the country.

UNI