M A I N   N E W S

World Cup matches
Land, air and sea routes to Mumbai under the scanner
Shiv Kumar/TNS

Mumbai, February 27
With memories of Kasab and his cohorts taking the sea route to Cuffe Parade in South Mumbai to unleash terror in the city on November 26, 2008, still fresh in their minds, the security personnel here are preparing to counter any terror threat to the teams participating in cricket World Cup matches to be held here.

Earlier this week, security experts from the International Cricket Council and the Central agencies met senior police officials to finalise preparations for the World Cup matches to be played here. “A number of disaster scenarios were examined and measures have been put in place,” a senior police official said.

The Wankhede stadium, the venue for various World Cup matches, including the final, is located in South Mumbai. It is at a stone’s throw away from the place where Kasab had gunned down senior police officers, including then chief of the Anti-Terror Squad Hemant Karkare.

The authorities have so far sanitised buildings around the stadium. “The high-rise buildings around the stadium present a major security risk and it would be difficult to monitor people going in and coming out of these buildings every day,” senior police officials said.

The police authorities are reportedly mulling the possibility of preventing people from gathering on the terraces of these buildings for watching matches. Police personnel have already carried out recce atop these buildings and snipers will take positions there whenever any World Cup match is in progress in the stadium.

Other arrangements will include intensified patrolling by the Navy and the Coast Guard along the beaches off South Mumbai. Security experts from the ICC have also told the authorities here about the possibility of airborne attacks, including infiltration by attackers using paragliders and other non-motorised craft, sources say.

The World Cup organisers also have in mind the terror attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Pakistan some years ago. Accordingly, the route from the hotel, where the teams will put up, to the Wankhede stadium will also come under security cover. Decoy vehicles will virtually make it impossible for onlookers to see players during transit. The food and drinks to be served to the players during their stay in Mumbai will also be checked as per security procedures, police officials say.

Strict security measures will also be in place for cricket fans. The police is mulling a ban on carrying mobile phones and bags inside the stadium. Mumbai’s Police Commissioner Sanjeev Dayal said the ICC committee on security would take a call on the issue. Similarly, entry and exit from the stadium might also be barred after the commencement of the match, according to Maharashtra Cricket Association sources.

The first match at Wankhede will be played on March 13.