PATNA: Panic prevailed among the authorities at the city’s Jaya Prakash Narayan International Airport on Friday afternoon after the airport director’s PA received an anonymous call regarding a bomb on the airport premises.
Airport officials immediately swung into action and the entire terminal building, parking area, apron and office complex were scanned by the CISF and state police. They could not find any bomb though.
Though the airport authorities suspected it to be a hoax call, airport director Rajender Singh Lahauria held an emergency meeting with the state police, CISF and bomb disposal squad.
Lahauria told this reporter his PA Anil Kumar received the call made to the airport landline number at 2.40pm. “Airport building mein bomb hai (There’s a bomb in the airport building),” Lahauria quoted the caller as having told Kumar.
“We immediately called the Bomb Threat Assessment Committee of the
airport police station, CISF commandant and a bomb disposal squad. Within 10 minutes, the team of security personnel scanned the airport premises without causing any inconvenience to flights and flyers,” Lahauria said and added all the flights landed and took off at their scheduled time.
A complaint has been lodged against the unidentified caller at the airport police station. “The caller’s number has been traced... I made several attempts to call back on that number, but there was no response,” said Lahauria.
The airport authorities, however, tightened the security and the passengers and luggage were checked twice and thrice as a precautionary measure.
Patna SSP Manu Maharaaj said efforts were on to nab the caller. “Once he is nabbed, we will know the motive behind the call,” he added.
On August 25, incidentally, the Aerodrome Committee of the airport had conducted an ‘anti-hijacking mock drill’ to check the preparedness of security personnel for tackling unforeseen and emergency situations.
