Arab News

NEW DELHI, 28 June 2003 — India’s Parliament complex is to be made secure with a range of measures including state-of-the-art electronic equipment. The measures are likely to be in place by November when the winter session of Parliament starts, security sources said.

The Joint Parliamentary Committee on security, which was set up in the wake of a terrorist attack on Parliament in December 2001, yesterday held talks with Defense Ministry officials. One issue discussed was the building of two bunkers below the Parliament complex.

Officials associated with the committee said a suggestion to close down Talkatora Road, which runs between Parliament House and the Parliament Annex, was also discussed at yesterday’s meeting. The committee suggested widening Imtiaz Khan Road, which runs parallel to the annex, to take up the traffic relocated as a result of the closing down of Talkatora Road.

“The most significant aspect of the meeting was the discussion the JPC held on possible threats of nuclear attacks and the use of chemical and biological agents,” the officials said.

A senior Lok Sabha member, who is on the committee, said the committee had received a number of suggestions but any plan would be implemented “based on the assessment of security experts.”

The committee also drew on the expertise of independent security agencies, who submitted their own reports on possible threats to the Parliament complex.

According to a committee member, the security measures being put in place have been devised to respond to all eventualities. “We will eventually have measures in place that will make the complex as secure as it can possibly be,” he said.