Kerala   

Row over security duties at airport

Nedumbassery: A controversy is brewing over the tasking of security work for international services from the Cochin International Airport with the civil aviation security authorities and Cochin International Airport Ltd. locking horns over the issue.  

The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), in an official letter sent to the airport director on February 4, 2011, said the CIAL was involving itself in security functions of airlines without approval from the BCAS and directed it to stop the practice and send an action-taken report in this regard. 

Operators' task

According to the BCAS, the airport operator is tasked to perform only in-line baggage screening and not any other airline's functions such as deployment of security personnel at various points. It also added that in spite of letters from the southern region office in Chennai, the CIAL was still continuing with the practice. 

This was followed by an immediate clarification from the CIAL, which quoted a letter it had received from the BCAS headquarters in 2005 conveying that there was no objection to CIAL performing the ground -handling services, including security functions. The letter also contained a copy of the minutes of a meeting convened by the joint secretary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation on October 21,.2010. 

However, the BCAS in its further reply on February 7 informed that the reply sent by CIAL was not in order and reiterated its demand.  

“As per the latest ground handling policy approved by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, it is possible for the airport operator to carry out the ground handling duty that also included these security functions, but the BCAS appears to be sticking to its earlier stand that these are functions assigned to the aircraft operators,” said A.C.K. Nair, airport director. 

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