Latest news with #CISF
Hindustan Times
a day ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
From a PMO 'rejected' catering bill to a 'stranded' home minister: Ex-UP DGP shares snippets in book
New Delhi, A caterer, who fed a prime minister's entourage in a mofussil town in the early 80s, being denied a ₹7,000 bill due to mention of chicken in the menu and the administration forgetting to receive a home minister at the railway station on a wintery morning are some of the anecdotes shared in a book written by former Uttar Pradesh DGP O P Singh on his policing experiences. The 1983-batch Indian Police Service officer has come out with a compilation of his "mosaic of experiences" gathered during 37 years of his career "Through My Eyes: Sketches from A Cop's Notebook". The top officer retired in January 2020 from the post of Uttar Pradesh director general of police after heading the CISF and the NDRF at the Centre. Last year, he came out with his memoir "Crime, Grime and Gumption: Case files of an IPS officer". The latest book, in Singh's words, is "not merely a recounting of events but a mosaic of narratives, each woven with the depth and nuances of storytelling". "This book is a collection of such moments anecdotes from my life, spanning from my childhood to my years in the police service," he writes in the author's note. Reading the book is like "flipping through an old photo album", he says. Sharing an incident from the summer of 1985, Singh, then a newly minted IPS officer-under-training in Moradabad district, recounts the day when he along with the city magistrate and DSP went to a restaurant near the railway station for a cup of tea. A man stood before them with "hands folded in greeting, head slightly bowed, his expression a mix of deference and desperation". The city magistrate dismissed him "with a quick flick of his eyes" and said "not now". A "curious" Singh sought to know who he was? "The man, as it turned out, was a caterer by profession. Years ago, when Chaudhary Charan Singh was Prime Minister, he had been tasked with providing food for the PM's entourage during a visit to this district. "As part of the grand arrangements made by the district administration, he had diligently prepared and served meals to a host of officials, guests and staff," Singh writes. He submitted a "modest" bill of ₹7,000 after the visit and mentioned "chicken" among the delicacies served. "What followed was a textbook case of bureaucratic ping-pong. The bill, innocuous as it seemed, began its long and winding journey through the labyrinth of government officers, file upon file, desk upon desk, the poor carter's bill travelled far and wide, gathering signatures, queries, objections and eventually dust." "Years passed and the bill's odyssey finally ended in the Prime Minister's Office where it awaited the ultimate stamp of approval," Singh writes. The PMO passed the final order: "The Prime Minister does not eat chicken. Payment denied." His money, Singh says, it seemed, had been "devoured- not by the diners, but by the system". The city magistrate ended the story saying "The poor fellow has been chasing that payment ever since." "Whenever we see him coming, we know it is chicken bill time," he said. Singh wonders at the "absurdity" of this incident saying the caterer's story was "a masterclass in the peculiar ways of bureaucracy, where logic often took a backseat to red tape". In 1986, Singh was posted as the Circle Officer of Mughalsarai in Varanasi district and was doubling up as "CO VIP" on a particular day. The then Uttar Pradesh home minister Gopi Nath Dixit reached the temple town on a scheduled tour onboard an early morning train but "surprisingly", Singh found out that there was "no sign" of the VIP car or the protocol magistrate to welcome and escort the minister. He alone received the minister and drove him in his Gypsy with his gunner climbing into the back. "This was the home minister of Uttar Pradesh, a cabinet-rank minister- a man of stature and significance- and yet, here we were, with no arrangements in place to honour his position." "The chill of the morning air felt heavier now, pressing on my sense of responsibility," the retired IPS officer recounts. The "worst" was yet to come, he adds. The VIP suite at the Circuit House, reserved for the minister, was locked and this was "nothing short of an administrative debacle". The caretaker was quickly located by a sentry and a traffic constable on duty and the suite was "hurriedly" opened. Soon after, the minister's PA reached the guest house and dialled some of those who mattered in the district. In no time, the Divisional Commissioner, DIG, District Magistrate and Senior Superintendent of Police descended upon the Circuit House as the assistant "unleashed a torrent of reprimands". The book, written in a short story format across 42 chapters, mentions some moving incidents involving Singh's police career including a case of "honour killing" where a man killed his daughter in "cold blood" and buried her body in the courtyard and the "tension" in Kasganj district when a Dalit decided to take this wedding procession through areas dominated by the upper caste. The author also shares a "softer side" of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, in a chapter named after him, when he "offered" him the services of the state helicopter for conducting field visits across the large central Indian state. PTI NES ZMN
Indian Express
a day ago
- Indian Express
Upset over baggage delay, passenger loses cool at Delhi Airport, video of violent outburst sparks outrage: 'Should be banned'
A video of a woman losing her cool at New Delhi's Indira Gandhi Airport has sparked a fresh debate on civic sense in India. According to the viral social media post, the incident unfolded after the baggage arrival was delayed due to a technical glitch. The video opens with the woman in a heated argument with airport staff, surrounded by a large crowd of passengers. As tensions escalate, she pushes through the crowd and violently knocks over a barricade stand, causing it to crash to the ground. According to eyewitnesses, the woman became involved in a heated altercation with airline staff and a Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) officer, demanding immediate action regarding her luggage. Despite repeated explanations from officials that the delay was due to technical problems, the passenger continued to argue. As the confrontation escalated, officials at the scene attempted to de-escalate the situation, urging the passenger to remain calm and cooperate, and emphasised that aggressive behaviour would not expedite the baggage retrieval process. In a statement, airport authorities urged all passengers to remain patient during operational disruptions, assuring that all delayed luggage would be delivered as soon as possible. The video was shared by an Instagram handle, aviationnews___. 'A scene of chaos unfolded at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport Terminal 3 earlier today after a female passenger lost her temper over a baggage delay caused by a reported technical glitch,' the caption read. Watch here: A post shared by AVIATION NEWS (@aviationnews___) Soon after the video came to light, social media users slammed the woman for lacking civic sense. 'Getting panic is not a solution need patience,' a user wrote. 'Should be Black listed ASAP. Passengers don't know a thing about airport operations but still have the guts to act like they own the whole airline and Airport,' another user commented. 'The baggage arrived 24 hours later? I think still she shouldn't act that way. Civic sense is zero in our country,' a third user reacted.
New Indian Express
2 days ago
- New Indian Express
Hoax bomb scare at Delhi's Udyog Bhawan, Nirman Bhawan
NEW DELHI: Udyog Bhawan and Nirman Bhawan, two key government buildings in central Delhi, were the target of hoax bomb threat emails on Friday. The emails, which contained threats related to suicide Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), were reportedly sent to a senior bureaucrat at the Ministry of Heavy Industries, according to officials. The emails were received at 6:49 am. The fire department officials said they were alerted to the threat at 1:01 pm. Upon receiving the warning, they immediately dispatched teams to the locations. The threat, which instructed the evacuation of the buildings by 3:15 pm, was flagged by the offices of the Secretary of Heavy Industries at Udyog Bhawan and officials at Nirman Bhawan to relevant security agencies, including Delhi Police, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and Delhi Fire Services (DFS). A thorough search operation was carried out at both locations, lasting for approximately four hours, but no suspicious objects were found. The operation involved a dozen sniffer dogs and four bomb detection and disposal teams from CISF, Delhi Police and Delhi Metro. Authorities are suspecting that the hoax may have been sent from Amsterdam.
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Hindustan Times
Odisha: Police recover part of 1.5 tonne explosives looted by Maoists from Saranda forests
Bhubaneswar: Three days after suspected Maoists looted around 1.5 tonnes of gelatin sticks from a truck near the Odisha-Jharkhand border, security forces have recovered a portion of the stolen explosives during a joint combing operation in the dense Saranda forests, police officers said on Friday. On Tuesday, eight armed persons had hijacked a truck laden with gelatin stocks near a forested stone quarry at Banko, within K. Balang police limits of Rourkela, and drove the vehicle to a nearby forest where they unloaded the explosives and allowed the truck driver to go. The truck driver told the police that another 10–15 people waiting inside the forest then looted at least 150 packets of explosives, each weighing 15 to 25 kg. Nine teams of the special operations group of the Odisha police, Jaguar team of the Jharkhand police, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), and Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) started a joint operation in the area, resulting in a few encounters. Also Read:NIA probes suspected Maoist links in loot of gelatin sticks in Odisha The police said that the looted gelatins, meant for the stone quarry, were in slurry form. The gelatin sticks can be used as IEDs if there are enough detonators with them. 'From our investigation, it is certain that Maoists from Saranda forest did it. That's why the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has started probing the loot,' a senior police official of Rourkela said. The police suspect the loot to be a retaliatory move by the Maoists after their top commanders, including Maoist leader Basavaraju, were killed in Narayanpur forest of Chhattisgarh last week. 'The amount that they have looted is too much for them to handle and carry around. Besides, they normally burn down the vehicles after looting, which they have not done in this case. We are working in coordination with the NIA team,' an officer said. Also Read: Forces raze memorials in Maoist citadels In one of the biggest-ever loot incidents, Maoists in April 2009 had looted about 25 tonnes of explosives, including ammonium nitrate and detonators, from the explosive warehouse of Nalco, manned by CISF jawans. 11 CISF jawans were killed in that attack.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Udyog Bhawan IED threat email similar to those sent to Mumbai airport, Jaipur collectorate etc
Representational image NEW DELHI: An email threat received by secretary, ministry of heavy industries warning of the use of 'suicide IEDs' in Udyog Bhavan, prompted an alert on Friday afternoon, though a search mounted by the Delhi Police and CISF eventually found it to be a hoax. Udyog Bhawan is located in a high-security area of the Capital that houses Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House and key Central government offices. An email dated 30.05.2025 was delivered to secretary, heavy industries, with a threatening message about the use of suicide IEDs on Udyog Bhawan premises and asking that they the building be evacuated by 3.15 pm. This prompted the ministry of heavy industries to inform the Delhi Police, which rushed its personnel and bomb disposal squad there. Sources told TOI that CISF, which secures Udyog Bhavan, was not simultaneously informed about the email and possibly learned of it when the Delhi Police arrived there. CISF eventually also received a formal letter from the ministry of heavy industries, with the threat email attached. A look at the email prima facie led the CISF to view it as part of the pattern of similar email threats received over the past couple of months warning of bomb attacks in different high-value buildings across the country, but which were later found to be a hoax. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Free P2,000 GCash eGift UnionBank Credit Card Apply Now Undo These email threats, suspected to be originating from the same IP address outside the country, have a common link – the mention of the 'unjust arrest' of Tamil YouTuber Savukku Shankar, though the sender is careful to also bring in the 'unjust hanging' of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru and 'custodial death' of 2G accused Shahid Balwa. Anyway, not wanting to leave anything to chance, CISF along with Delhi Police conducted a thorough search of the Udyog Bhawan premises, even though no evacuation was carried out to avoid panic among the people. After floor-by-floor search of the area, the CISF declared the premises to be safe and ruled out the presence of any IED. Similar email threats were received earlier, warning of bomb threats at the Mapusa deputy collector's office in Goa on April 3, the Jaipur collectorate on April 4, the Taj Palace Hotel and Chhatrapati Shivaji airport terminal in Mumbai on May 17 and the Punjab and Haryana High Court premises on May 22. All were found to be a hoax.
