City Reports

Mock drill over bomb threat conducted at Crystal Palm

As soon as the information was received, Jaipur police with security forces and bomb detection squad reached there. The fire alarm was sounded and people were evacuated. After the call was declared a hoax, the administration revealed that it was a mock drill to check the preparedness of security agencies for handling a terror attack.

August 29, 2018, 2:58 pm

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mock drill crystal palm

Policemen checking the mall during the mock drill at Crystal Palm in Jaipur.

Jaipur: Panic gripped Crystal Palm – a popular shopping mall at Bais Godown in Jaipur – when the police control room received a bomb threat call on Wednesday.

As soon as the information was received, Jaipur police along with security personnel from many agencies and a bomb disposal squad reached there. The fire alarm was sounded and people were evacuated. After the call was declared a hoax, the administration revealed that it was a mock drill to check the preparedness of security agencies for handling a terror attack.

As part of the mock exercise, a bomb was assumed to be in one of the dustbins of the mall. The security forces took that dustbin out of the mall with safety measures.

“This exercise was conducted by the administration to check the security measures and operational preparedness for handling these kinds of terrorist insurgency in future,” a police officer said.

He added that the drill started when an assumed ‘bomb threat call’ in one of the dustbins at the crystal palm mall of the city was received. Various agencies were informed about this in due time.

“Fire services, medical services, Bomb squad force (BSF) and other forces reached the place and conducted the bomb operation. An anti-sabotage check of the mall was conducted and all the people in the mall were alarmed to go out of the mall.” The officer said.

This mock drill created the panic situation among the visitors. Everyone was running out of the mall.

“I left my shopping cart without purchasing the products in the middle of the store as soon as the fire alarm was sounded. The security forces were checking every nook and corner. We later found out that it was the mock drill,” said Karishma Jain, a visitor at the mall during the incident.

First published: August 29, 2018