November 11 Monday 2002
Security tightened ahead of India, WI tie

AHMADABAD: Security has been tightened in the western Indian state of Gujarat ahead of three limited-over international cricket matches between India and the West Indies, police and officials said Sunday. Police in strife-torn Gujarat, where more than 1,000 people died earlier this year in the worst Hindu-Muslim riots in India in a decade, were geared up for any kind of trouble, including spectator violence or a terrorist attack, said Sanjay Srivastav, superintendent of police of Gandhinagar, the state capital.

"More than 1,000 policemen will be deployed in and around the stadium. Thorough frisking of spectators will be carried out at the entry gates,'' he said. The one-day matches are to be played in three Gujarat towns, Rajkot, Ahmadabad and Vadodara starting Nov 12.

Srivastav said police would also be on alert to prevent any outbreak of spectator hooliganism. Policemen in plainclothes and officials of the Gujarat Cricket Association will be positioned in the stands to keep watch. More than 1,000 people, mostly Muslims, were killed in sectarian rioting and fighting this year in Gujarat. 

The violence began in February after a Muslim mob burned a train carrying Hindu pilgrims, triggering a wave of reprisals by Hindus against Muslims. In September, two suspected Islamic militants attacked a Hindu temple in Gujarat's capital, Gandhinagar, killing 33 people.

Officials said stringent security guidelines had been put in place in the three towns.

"Sniffer dog squads will be kept on standby while anti-sabotage checks will carried out before play begins. Metal detectors will be used to check all those entering the stadium. The match organizers have also been asked to provide a second line of security at all the venues besides the police force,'' said K. 

Nityanandam, a top Gujarat official. Even state-run hospitals in the three cities have been put on a state of alert, a top health official said. "Doctors and staff of government hospitals will be on high alert. Medical services will be in a state of readiness to handle any emergency,'' said S.K. Nanda, Gujarat health secretary.