IGI officials on tenterhooks as audit date draws near

Authorities at the Indira Gandhi International Airport are taking all steps required to ensure that it clears an audit by international aviation body International Civil Aviation Organisation,slated to be conducted next month.

Authorities at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport are taking all steps required to ensure that it clears an audit by international aviation body International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO),slated to be conducted next month.

Sources said among the problem areas are the poor lighting arrangements around the airport periphery. Trees should be pruned to effect better security. As access control at the cargo terminal is managed by a private security agency,security levels are not particularly high. In the interests of better hygiene,security personnel are required to use gloves while frisking passengers. Also,the number of security officials responsible for screening and profiling passengers is inadequate,as is the count of personnel deployed at aircraft boarding gates.

Airport authorities are understandably wary as they prepare to receive a team of officials from the ICAO for an audit in the first week of February. Unwilling to take any chances,the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) has conducted an internal audit of facilities in and around the airport and has asked the agencies concerned to implement the recommendations before the audit team reaches India.

Story continues below this ad

The audit would essentially find out how internationally prescribed norms are being followed at the airport,based on instructions issued by the BCAS. Airport operator DIAL is working on cleaning the perimeter. Construction waste is being removed and trees have been pruned. New lights have been put up,and malfunctioning ones have been rectified. Soon,CISF personnel who frisk passengers will be instructed to wear gloves, a senior ministry official said.

Delhi Airport officials said certain practices followed at the airport were not in tune with international norms. Based on the threat perception,a secondary ladder point check is conducted just before the passenger enters the aircraft. Boarding passes and passenger baggage are stamped by CISF officials at Indian airports,which again is not an international practice.

Various recommendations were made by the BCAS,and feedback given on the basis of an internal audit conducted earlier this month. The BCAS has also developed a model security programme,which would be followed by all airlines. Earlier,airlines used to follow different security procedures, a BCAS official said.

In its feedback,the BCAS also said that the number of security personnel deployed for screening and profiling of passengers was far less than the required count.

Story continues below this ad

It was found that the number of personnel deployed at aircraft boarding gates was less than needed. Also,at the cargo terminal,access control is handled by a private security agency. This would be done by the CISF in future to prevent any instance of unlawful entry into the area, the official added.

Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram