New Delhi   

High alert in Capital

Sandeep Joshi

Security stepped up at key installations and market places

NEW DELHI: Even as the Delhi police sounded a red alert and stepped up security at key installations and market places in the wake of the serial blasts in the Capital on Saturday evening, panic-stricken Delhiites rushed home and all markets were instantly closed. The police also ensured that key tourist destinations, including India Gate, were vacated to avert any further trouble.

Apart from the Delhi police, other security forces deployed at key installations including important government buildings, airports, railway stations, bus terminals and Delhi Metro were put on high alert. The police have also appealed to the people to report any suspicious movement or acts they might have noticed during the past few days.

Barricades erected

Barricades were erected and vehicles were thoroughly checked at several places all through Saturday evening, while the civic administration alerted all hospitals and doctors at important hospitals including the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences, Safdarjung and Ram Manohar Lohia hospitals were asked to immediately report for their duties.

Putting a dampener on the festival season, markets that were teaming with shoppers at the time of the blasts were asked to down their shutters and announcements were made through loudspeakers asking people not to touch unclaimed objects. Among the major markets that closed down immediately after the blasts were Karol Bagh, Chandni Chowk, Lajpat Nagar, Darya Ganj, Sadar Bazar, South Extension, Tilak Nagar and Connaught Place.

"The police have been on high alert for the past few weeks and posters had been pasted asking people to remain extra vigilant. Incidentally, at the time of the blasts, I was in my neighbourhood market. Immediately after the news came in, announcements were made through the public address system asking people not to touch suspicious objects and report any unusual happenings to the police," said Devika Pathak, a resident of Saket in South Delhi.

More PCR vans deployed

Similarly, all Delhi Metro stations that have been put on "high alert" from the security point of view also saw additional personnel and general staff fanning out at stations to monitor the situation. While additional Police Control Room vans were deployed at entry points of Metro stations, checking of luggage and frisking of passengers was also intensified.

The blasts had its repercussions in the entire National Capital Region with the Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Haryana police sounding alerts in their respective States, particularly in the adjoining townships of Gurgaon, Noida, Ghaziabad and Faridabad. Special security arrangements were made and thorough checking was done at all shopping malls and multiplexes that have come up in large numbers in these townships.

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