THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Elaborate security arrangements are in place for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the capital on Tuesday to flag off the Vande Bharat train, lay the foundation stone for the Digital Science Park and inaugurate a slew of projects in the state. The city police have tightened security at Thampanoor and Central Stadium at Statue in the wake of intelligence reports.
Special Protection Group (SPG) commandos will also be in charge of security at Thampanoor Central Railway Station, which the PM will visit at 10.30 am. More than 2,000 police personnel will be deployed in the city as part of the security arrangements. A high-level meeting led by city commissioner CH Nagaraju was held on Saturday and Sunday to review the arrangements. All station house officers took part in the meeting.
Vehicle parking will be prohibited at Thampanoor and locations close to the Central Stadium from 8am to 12pm. As part of the security arrangements, the KSRTC bus station at Thampanoor will not be operational from 8am to 11am.
All KSRTC services until 11am will operate from Vikas Bhavan depot. Shops and offices in the KSRTC shopping complex will function only after 11am. Autorickshaws will not be allowed to station at the auto rickshaw stand at Thampanoor during this period. Offices and other institutions near the Central Stadium are also expected to remain closed until the function is wrapped up.
DGP seeks report from Intelligence ADGP
Meanwhile, state police chief Anil Kant has sought report from ADGP (Intelligence) T K Vinod Kumar on the leak of the security plan prepared by him in view of the PM’s visit. The city police have initiated a probe to check whether the report was leaked in Thiruvananthapuram. According to the city police commissioner, the deputy commissioner of police, Ajith V, has been entrusted with the probe. He clarified that there was nothing to worry and that the police had readied other security schemes, adding that the arrangements would be made without causing trouble to the public.
A 49-page document containing information on threats to Modi from various extremist outfits and the deployment of scores of officers during his two-day visit to Kerala was leaked on Saturday. It points out the need to tighten the security cover after the terror attack in Pulwama and the PFI’s (Popular Front of India) ban. It also refers to the possibility of an attack following young Kerala women joining ISIS and warning of a terrorist attack. The report also mentions a letter received at the BJP office threatening that there would be a suicide attack on Modi.
The arrangements were drawn up after discussions with SPG and IB officers. The document includes details of the number of police personnel at each point, names of the officers in charge and alternative arrangements and routes to be taken in case of emergency.
Modi to inaugurate slew of projects
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate a slew of projects at the Central Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday at 11am. These include development projects of Thiruvananthapuram Central, Kozhikode, Varkala Sivagiri, Nemom and Kochuveli railway stations and laying the foundation stone of Digital Science Park near Digital University campus at Technopark phase-IV (Technocity).
He will also launch Kochi Water Metro and Dindigul-Palani-Palakkad section railway electrification projects during his two-day visit to Kochi and the capital. Governor Arif Mohammed Khan, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and MP Shashi Tharoor will also be present among others.