CISF is responsible for security at as many as 60 airports across the country.
The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) may be in for a paradigm shift in its approach to aviation security. The specially trained force is responsible for security at as many as 60 airports across the country and has always emphasised the need to improve soft skills to make security checks passenger-friendly and welcoming.
All that may change soon. CISF DG Rajesh Ranjan, citing an “over-friendly” approach as among the reasons for the 9/11 attacks in the US, now plans to temper “friendly smiles” to focus more on its core duty: security. And with the introduction of new technologies such as body scanners and body-worn cameras soon, the CISF is now expected to become more vigilant than friendly.
“We cannot be over-friendly with the passengers because one of the reasons cited as to why 9/11 (the 2001 terror attack on the World Trade Centre in the US) happened… was excessive reliance on passenger-friendly features where security personnel went out of the way to ensure that the passenger is facilitated, thereby compromising on security,” said Ranjan.
He was speaking to reporters Monday…
