Terror alert was sounded on Sunday in all metros, including Bengaluru, following reports of 10 terrorists sneaking into India through Gujarat.
The Centre has also rushed four teams of the anti-terror force, the National Security Guard, to Gujarat after a Pakistani boat was found abandoned in the Sir Creek area near the international border.
Alarm bells were set off in the security establishment here after Pakistan’s National Security Adviser Nasir Khan Janjua tipped off his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval about a 10-member team of Lashkar-e-Toiba terrorists setting sail for Indian shores with an intention to carry out “spectacular strikes” coinciding with Mahashivaratri festivities and the ongoing Budget session of Parliament.
Gujarat minister Rajnikant Patel said security across the state has been beefed up at all key installations. “This is in the wake of information received by the Indian government from Pakistan that some terrorists may have entered India through Gujarat,” Patel told reporters in Ahmedabad.
In Delhi, police have been asked to step up security at crowded areas, shopping malls and key markets. Officials here did not confirm that inputs were received from Pakistan, but combing operations have been launched in Kutch, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.
In Bengaluru, a senior police officer said policemen were already keeping a watch at bus stands, railway stations, lodges, malls and other public places. “We also request the public to inform the control room on finding anything or anyone suspicious. All precautionary measures have been taken and routine checks will be conducted at frequent intervals,” he added.
Western Army Commander Lt Gen K J Singh had last week said that security agencies had received inputs of a possible terror attack to create “maximum media impact”.Reports from Gujarat said important monuments, and pilgrimage centres such as Somnath temple, Dwarka Temple, Akashardham, power plants, defence establishments, Sardar Sarovar Dam have been put on alert. A team of NSG commandos has been deployed at the famous Somnath Temple that is attracting huge crowds on account of Mahashivaratri, a senior Gujarat Police official said. The Gir-Somnath district authorities have postponed Monday’s cultural event at Somnath temple owing to the terror threat. In Kolkata, security has been stepped up at NSC Bose International Airport after an email threat that it would be blown up within 24 hours, airport officials said.
The email came to the airport manager’s ID early on Sunday and it was claimed to have been sent from Germany, they said. Delhi Police officials said intelligence inputs specifically mentioned about 10 militants of Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) outfits having entered India via Gujarat and that they could carry out a terror strike in Delhi. The police are also ensuring that CCTV cameras at all places with high footfall, like popular markets in the city and metro stations, are functional. Patrolling across the city has been intensified.
Published 06 March 2016, 20:48 IST