With a slew of advanced security equipment already provided under the Integrated Security System (ISS) to Tiruchi Junction, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel managing the system were trained in handling some of these devices.
A group of field-level RPF personnel from Tiruchi Railway Division were handpicked for the training that got under way at the RPF Zonal Training Institute at Khajamalai in Tiruchirapalli. The focus of the two-day programme was to train personnel in operating hi-tech Vapour Tracer with Local Craft Terminal and the Real-Time Viewing System. At least 60 RPF personnel from the rank of Constable to Sub-Inspector took part in the day-long session. The participants were explained the salient features of the Vapour Tracer, which was meant to detect explosives, and ways of operating it during emergencies.
The training was provided by the representatives of the company that had supplied the equipment under the ISS. Personnel of the RPF Bomb Detection Squad managing the ISS also participated in the programme. Further training would be on Real-Time Viewing System, another advanced gadget which would scan for explosives, weapons, and other contraband concealed in baggage, parcels and boxes, say RPF officials. This was the first time the RPF personnel were being imparted practical training in handling these security gadgets since the implementation of the ISS in Tiruchi Railway Junction in 2013.
Tiruchi is among the major railway stations in the country and in the Southern Railway zone brought under the scope of the ISS, which was conceived by the railway administration in the aftermath of the terror attacks in Mumbai in November 2008. Under the ISS, a total of 67 surveillance cameras were installed at various points in Tiruchi Junction to keep round-the-clock check on the activities taking place at the station and its concourse area. Other equipment provided under the ISS include bomb suppression blanket, bomb basket, under vehicle search scanner, door-frame metal detectors, handheld metal detectors, x-ray baggage scanners, parcel scanner, and bomb suit. Although two Under Vehicle Search Scanners have been installed – one at the main entrance of the station and another at Kallukuzhi entrance – they are yet to be commissioned and handed over to the RPF.
