NEW DELHI, February 27: Prime Minister I K Gujral's brush with TV has sent Noida residents into a tizzy. In just under a month, he has made two ``flying visits'' to this satellite city. And on Saturday, he will fly down again to appear in yet another show.What is giving the police sleepless nights is that Gujral will be joined by BJP's Atal Behari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh of the Congress.
Though both Vajpayee and Singh will drive down to the Film City in Noida for the shoot, Gujral will use his prime ministerial privilege and fly down.
So the Special Protection Group (SPG) has asked for a helipad as close to the Film City as possible. And the Noida police have commandeered the playground of the Apeejay School, a two-minute walk from Eagle Studios where the shoots take place.
Appejay school authorities had spread manure all over the football field for a green grass cover but this afternoon when the SPG announced Gujral's plans, Uttar Pradesh police personnel removed the manure from the field.Thepolice are also sanitising the entire area around the Film City.
``Roads are blocked when the Prime Minister lands and takes off. The school and the Film City are both on the main road to Noida and Dadri and cause traffic problems,'' a traffic police official said.
This time, unfortunately for the police, the shooting comes on the same day as the third phase of the election for the 12th Lok Sabha.
``After the repoll order in Baghpat, part of the Uttar Pradesh police will be detained for the Prime Minister I K Gujral the former prime minister and the former finance minister,'' an official of the Meerut Range said.
Apeejay school principal Janak Raj Prashar said the district administration had sought his permission for using the school football field for the Prime Minister's choppers to land. ``And like twice before even this time I gave them permission without asking any questions. After all it is the question of the PM's security,'' Prashar said.
``He (Gujral) is more of a grandfather than a PrimeMinister,'' said Prashar. ``He spent more than an hour with the children when he came the first time on January 28,'' he said.
``However, I did not let the children disrupt their study schedule, the second time. After all if they meet him every day the charm of meeting a Prime Minister will go away,'' Prashar pointed out.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
