Gujarat police ramp up security at state secretariat

With the heightened concerns over the security of politicians following the recent email purportedly sent by al-Qaeda and threatening to assassinate chief minister Narendra Modi and others, the Gujarat police have decided to ramp up the security arrangement at the state secretariat in Gandhinagar. 

The police have decided to install a radio frequency identification (RFI) system on the premises, said  AK Sharma, inspector-general of police, Gandhinagar range. “A visitor to the state secretariat will be fitted with a radio tag that will track his/her movement on the premises and alert the control room if something is found suspicious with the visitor,” Sharma said.

Besides being tagged by a microchip, a visitor will have to furnish to the security officials details like his/she name, address, contact number, name of the person to see and purpose of the visit before seeking entry into the secretariat.

Additionally, he/she will have to provide details like the registration number of his/her vehicle and the location where it will remain parked during the time of the visit. The security agency will keep a tab on such vehicles, the IGP further said.  The purpose of the high-tech arrangement is to thwart possible attempts by terror or anti-social elements to breach the security at the secretariat, Sharma added. However, the project is likely to take some time for implementation.