The e-mail mentions that the woman overheard six boys talking about a possible aircraft hijack attempt at these facilities, they said. The Mumbai Police shared the e-mail with all security and intelligence agencies. A meeting of all stakeholders at these airports was subsequently convened and the input was declared specific and actionable, they said. Press Trust of India file photo
An email about possible aircraft hijack has prompted the government to put international airports in Mumbai, Hyderabad and Chennai on high alert on Sunday.
The e-mail, which was purportedly sent by a Hyderabad-based woman, claimed she overheard six men talking about sending "23 men" to three cities to board flights and hijack them. According to the email, the men said that "all 23 people have to split from here and board flights in three cities and hijack planes".
Soon after Mumbai Police, which received the mail on late Saturday, shared the contents with central security and intelligence agencies, the security at these three airports and others were increased with more personnel from the CISF and state police deployed at the facilities.
CISF Director General O P Singh said the security apparatus at the airports has been put on "an enhanced alert and protocols have been stepped up".
The security establishment believe that the threat may finally be blown over with it being a hoax. However, they are not taking anything for chance. The e-mail writer herself had written that what she heard may turn false but she decided to inform police as she thought it was her duty to do so.
With the central agencies stepping up vigil, the CISF carried out special anti-sabotage sweeps at the three airports. Passengers had to go through a more rigourous checking while baggage screening was stepped up.
The intensity of the pre-embarkation checks and secondary ladder point checking was also increased, sources said. Sniffer dogs were seen in airports in more numbers.
The airports have already been under heavy security following threat perception. According to a Parliamentary panel, the latest threat inputs on airports include use of surgically implanted explosives for interference in civil aviation operations, IEDs hidden in printer ink and toner cartridges, hijacking using trained pilots and forcible intrusion at smaller airports.
Though the terror threat perception is high here, the panel was told, India has been rated highly in terms of aviation security in the last International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) audit in 2011. The parameter, Lack of Effective Implementation (LEI) for India stood at 10.75 per cent against global average of 34.01 per cent.