The domestic terminal of the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) Airport here was evacuated, and flight services were suspended for over half an hour on Saturday, following a mock terror drill conducted by the Airport Authority of India. According to the plan of the drill, airport authorities evacuated all passengers and airline employees from the domestic terminal at around 1.45 p.m. announcing that a warning had been received about a bomb on the premises.
“We were conducting a routine mock terror drill. Such drills are being conducted from time to time to check the preparedness of the security agencies as well as the employees to face a real terror situation,” R. Sreenivasan, Director of the NSCBI Airport, told The Hindu .
As part of the drill, the entire area was cordoned off by the Central Industrial Security Force and State police personnel. Sniffer dogs and a bomb detection squad were also arranged. The ‘search operation' ran till 2.45 p.m.
Normal flight movement was resumed soon after.
In reply to a query, Mr. Sreenivasan said one or two flights scheduled during this period suffered minor delays.
