Chennai: Security has been beefed up across the city ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Chennai on Sunday. He is scheduled to arrive from Delhi in a special aircraft at 11.10am. He will travel by car to Porur to attend the inauguration of a metro rail project, then to IIT Madras in Guindy and Chennai Trade Centre in Nandambakkam for other programmes. He is scheduled to leave Chennai for Delhi at 4pm. Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay is also expected to attend the programmes.A team of Special Protection Group (SPG) officials led by ADGP Amit Kumar has arrived from Delhi to oversee arrangements, and additional restrictions have been imposed at the airport and its surroundings. A meeting was held at the old airport on Thursday evening to review arrangements. Senior airport officials, Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel, Chennai police officers, state govt protocol officials and central and state intelligence officials attended the meeting.The original plan for the Prime Minister to travel by helicopter from the airport to Porur has been dropped, and he will now be travelling by road in Chennai. With roadshows also being planned at some locations along his route, the SPG has sought additional security arrangements. Security at the airport will remain under SPG control from Friday until Sunday night. Meanwhile, the Greater Chennai Police have deployed 15,000 personnel under a five-tier security arrangement. Drone cameras and unmanned aerial objects have been prohibited in designated areas declared red zones. The security arrangements were reviewed at a meeting held at the police commissionerate in Vepery on Friday under the leadership of commissioner of police A Amalraj. As part of the security measures, Meenambakkam, Guindy, Kotturpuram, Porur and Nandambakkam, along with the routes where the Prime Minister will travel, have been declared red zones on Oct 11. Police are conducting intensive checks at lodges, hostels, and other accommodation facilities to identify suspicious persons. Vehicle checks have been intensified on major roads, while security and surveillance have been strengthened at railway stations, Metro stations and bus terminals across the city.
