26 March,2011 06:33 AM IST | | Bipin Kumar Singh
Instructions have been issued to all airports to check the baggage of visitors thoroughly; Home Ministry to only clear visas of those with valid tickets for the semi-final
WHILE fans on both sides of the border are eagerly counting down the days to the much-anticipated India-Pakistan semi-final at Mohali on March 30, the tie has left security agencies worried.
Officials have been advised to thoroughly screen the baggage of spectators coming in from Pakistan for the match
Plans are afoot to thoroughly screen the baggage of spectators coming in from Pakistan at airports as agencies have received information that most of them will be entering the country through the aerial route.
The Home Ministry has also decided to issue visas to only those Pakistanis who have a valid ticket for the match.
The Bureau of Civil Aviation Securities (BCAS), which designs the security modules for airports, has issued an advisory to all of them to undertake special screening in the run-up to the match to avoid any untoward incidents.
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"We don't want to take any risks. People will be coming from Pakistan to watch the match at Mohali and we will ensure that no one breaches the security," said a top airport security official from Delhi, on condition of anonymity
Union Home Secretary G K Pillai said, "It was decided that we would issue 5,000 visas but now we will issue visas only to those people who hold valid tickets for the match. I don't know how many people have managed to get the tickets as most of them were booked in advance."
When Pillai was asked whether any extra visas would be issued, he said, "There is nothing like an extra visa. We will give visas only to those people who have the valid tickets for the match."
A senior official from the external affairs ministry said, "We are getting a lot of requests from Pakistan related to visas for the match.
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But any visa to a Pakistani national is routed through the home department, which will take the final decision."
