Republic Day: Air bases around Delhi put on high alert

"Around Republic Day every year, the IAF puts its airbases around Delhi on a routine alert," IAF spokesman T K Singha said. The alert coincides with terror warning by the government about possible threats from Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba following reports that the terror outfit has procured 50 paragliders for air-borne suicide attacks.

Government has put all Air India planes operating in the country's neighbourhood on high security alert following intelligence inputs from Western agencies that LeT and other terror groups were planning to hijack a flight.

According to intelligence inputs, terrorist groups having allegiance with al-Qaeda, LeT and Jamat-ul-Dawa were planning to hijack an Air India plane especially operating in or from SAARC countries -- Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Maldives, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India as well.