MOHALI: Sniffer dogs will guard India’s first fully air-conditioned bus terminus, resembling an airport lounge, inaugurated here on Friday. The canine protection will be in addition to a contingent of private security personnel, 360 CCTVs, public video and audio system which will keep tabs on the terminus.
Speaking to Express, Gurjeet Singh Johar, chairman, C&C Constructions Limited that undertook the bus terminus project, said, "A total of 12 dogs will be deployed at the bus terminus - six in each shift - and there will be two shifts.
These will be Labradors and Golden Retrievers. We have already selected the dogs and they will be deployed shortly." "The dogs are being deployed as the footfalls in the facility will reach 60,000 passengers daily. Besides, it will help in keeping an eye their luggage, since 1,900 buses will ply from here daily to different parts of Punjab and other states. There will also be luggage scanners which have been installed and around 60 private security personnel deployed round-the-clock for security, in addition to a team of Punjab Police. The dogs will check the area and luggage randomly. Besides, they are trained to keep an eye on any suspicious movement," said Johar.
He said 360 CCTVs have been installed covering every inch of the Inter-State Bus Terminus (ISBT), besides public television screens as well as a public audio system for any emergency.
"We have offered to the people of North India a world class Air Conditioned Busopolis - a one-stop facility for their travel, entertainment, shopping and daily needs. This complex offers a complete lifestyle experience for the user, backed by Wi-Fi, electronic surveillance and a facility management service. The Mohali Terminus Mega Project is spread across an area of 7.02 acres, incurred a total project cost of `700 crore and is being executed in three phases," he added.
It will also have food courts and retail outlets, ATMs, cyber cafes, medical aid and pharmacy, multilevel parking, waiting areas and cloakrooms.
While inaugurating the terminus known as Baba Banda Singh Bahadur ISBT, Punjab deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal said it's equipped with all modern state-of-the-art facilities such as online ticketing, and other facilities for the ease of the public.
Describing it as India's first model bus terminus, he claimed that it can be favourably compared with any of its kind across the globe.
