How safe are you at Egmore station?

CHENNAI: At a time when soft targets have become more and more vulnerable to terrorist attacks in the country, this piece of information may terrorise you even more. A sizeable number of Door Frame Metal Detectors installed at the Chennai Central and Egmore railway stations in the city are not functioning.Door Frame Metal Detector (DFMD) is a (security) device that provides security against trespassers and those carrying arms. It can detect both ferrous and non-ferrous metals concealed on a person in any conceivable manner.According to official estimates, about 3.30 lakh people visit the Central, Moore Market Complex and Egmore railway stations everyday. On an average, 45 pairs of express and mail trains are being operated  from Central daily, while 27 pairs of long distance trains are running from Egmore railway station. Besides, the presence of numerous shops and food courts make it a soft target.When this reporter visited both the railway stations on Thursday evening - a day after the bomb blast in Delhi High Court - several DFMDs appeared to be non-functional, which could probably give ample space for strangers to gain a hassle-free access into these stations for executing their mischievous act. This apart, the security device is also missing from some entrances, adding fuel to the fire.For instance, of the eight entrances at the Egmore railway station, only three are equipped with DFMD. Except for one entrance on the southern side of the station with a luggage scanner facility, people were found entering the station bypassing the walk through type DFMD.Ironically, the northern entrance to the station, used by tens and thousands of people, has little security with only a couple of armed policemen and a CCTV camera keeping a close watch on the movements of the passengers.The situation at Central and Moore Market railway stations was almost similar with the security device near the platform ticket counter and the side entrances reportedly are not working.When contacted, a senior official of the Government Railway Police said that three DFMD were identified as not functioning. "During an inspection at Central and Egmore railway stations in the aftermath of bomb blasts in the Delhi High Court, we noticed that three DFMDs were not working at Egmore and Central railway stations, with a couple of them being at the Chennai Central Railway Station."Immediately, orders were passed to repair it," the official added. As far as the Egmore railway station is concerned, the Railway Protection Force is installing 52 digital CCTV cameras, replacing the existing 29 analog cameras before the end of this year. "Moreover, we are also installing a sophisticated security device for scanning the vehicles entering the railway station under the integrated security system," a RPF official said.

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