A senior CISF official said: “Unattended baggage is a major security threat to passengers as well as airport infrastructure — any such piece of baggage could very well be an Improvised Explosive Device (IED). And if they are not detected by the security personnel and go into wrong hands, it could be a personal loss to the passenger.”

The approximate worth of materials and cash recovered from those baggages is Rs 5.12 crore, officials said.

CISF spokesperson Rohit Katiyar said the paramilitary force has put special emphasis on identifying unattended baggage at the Delhi airport. “Reports about them are duly passed on to airport managers as well as the bomb disposal and detection squad (BDDS),” Katiyar said.

Officials said though security personnel deployed at IGI Airport face trouble with the ongoing construction and renovation work, their operational preparedness has increased multifold. “The ongoing construction activity does make us more vulnerable with the heightened threat perception at the hypersensitive Delhi airport, but we are mentally better equipped to deal with any situation after the November 26 attacks in Mumbai,” the senior CISF official said.

With an aim to maximise passenger security by having all verified taxi drivers outside the arrival halls, the CISF apprehended 275 touts from outside the airport in 2008. And with the help of CCTV cameras and two dedicated CCTV control rooms at the airport premises, at least 18 cases of theft, cheating, ammunition, rash driving, trespass, narcotics and others were detected last year, officials said.

“There are more than 270 surveillance cameras at the domestic and international terminals at present,” an airport official said.

Total cases detected by
CISF: 18
Theft / Cheating: 5
Ammunition: 4
Rash Driving: 1
Trespassing: 3
Narcotics detection: 2
Others: 3
Unattended baggages
restored 7,289

Value of restored articles
Rs 5,11,23,966
Number of touts
apprehended in 2008
275