Mock drills held at prominent spots in Vadodara

VADODARA: Mock drills were carried out by city police and other security agencies at various parts of the city on Thursday. An hour-long mock drill was conducted at the railway station, a Fatehgunj-based mall and at the airport in the morning.
“Various security agencies came together to conduct the mock drill. The mock drill at the railway station was held to prepare security forces for crisis situations like casualty caused due to accidents and terror strikes,” said deputy superintendent of police of railway police, S S Baranda.
Baranda added that the mock drill was carried out to evaluate the preparedness of security forces, considering the forthcoming high profile events in the city.
Various agencies like Railway Protection Force, fire brigade, 108 ambulance service, and team of doctors from SSG Hospital (SSGH) came together to be a part of the mock drill held at the railway station. The mock drill conducted at Fatehgunj-based mall was an exercise carried out to counter terror strikes.
“The mock exercise was a part of our contingency plan for which we informed all the security agencies and emergency services in advance. These routine mock drills are conducted to train our security personnel to be prepared for various emergency situations,” said police commissioner E Radhakrishanan. The mock drill at the airport dealt with the scenario of full-scale emergency situation. Along with city police, SSGH, and city-based emergency services, personnel from Central Industrial Security Force also participated in the exercise held at the airport.
“We conduct the mock drill every two years. The agenda of the exercise is to assess the efficacy of the security forces. The mock exercise was carried out as per the instructions from Directorate General of Civil Aviation,” said Santosh Dhoke, airport director, Vadodara.