SECTIONS Home »City Nairobi terror attack shadow on Hyderabad malls In the wake of terror attack on a mall in central Nairobi last week and renewed warnings by central agencies about possible militant attacks in the city, shopping malls have heightened security and surprise checks. Major malls have upped their surveillance measures such as patrolling, number of cameras and have also increased the checking of vehicles . "Since the news of the attack at the mall , we have been in a state of high alert. Frisking and checking are being done more thoroughly and every vehicle which enters the premises is being checked," said Mohan Shah, security manager of Inorbit Mall. The National Investigation Agency has also warned of two IM operatives who are on the run and possible terror attacks in the city, following which electronic surveillance and manpower has been strengthened at malls. "We have increased the number of people on night shifts lately and additional cameras have been installed on all floors. The police are making surprise visits every now and then to check security so we have to be prepared at all times," said Asim Mumtaz, mall manager of City Centre mall in Banjara Hills. Shopping malls have often being perceived as soft targets for terror attacks. Last week, armed gunmen barged into a mall in Kenya , similar to the 26/11 attacks on Mumbai, and started shooting people. Many Indians have died in the attacks in Nairobi, but it has served as wake up call for mall owners in Hyderabad to beef up security as shopping arcades are considered a soft target. Following the Dilsukhnagar blasts in February 21 this year, the Hyderabad police had directed all shopping malls to install CCTV cameras and door-frame metal detectors. Mall managers were also told to employ trained security personnel to conduct frisking operations properly and also keep a watch on suspicious or abandoned vehicles. They had ordered malls to maintain a registry of entrants as well. Many malls, which have a cinema hall attached, have also been taking precautions before and after every movie screening. Cinema hall managers have been directed to play screen slides advising people to be cautious of their surroundings and to report any suspicious object or activity immediately. "We are now holding frequent briefings on security arrangements, which we update regularly. We have hired security agencies to assist us, especially during events and sales when we need to increase manpower," said Sushil Kumar, manager for customer relations at Hyderabad Central mall at Punjagutta. Like tag comment share
Posted on: Thu, 26 Sep 2013 05:45:26 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015