Security tightened along Indo-Nepal border after Delhi blast

Mahrajganj (UP), Nov 11 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh Police and the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), along with various intelligence agencies, have increased vigil on the Sonauli border of India and Nepal following the high-intensity explosion near the Red Fort metro station in New Delhi on Monday evening, officials said.

Security agencies have been asked to ascertain the identities of people before allowing them to cross over through the border, Superintendent of Police (SP) Mahrajganj Somendra Meena said on Tuesday.

To strengthen the security arrangements at the porous India-Nepal border and to stop infiltration of anti-national elements, the SSB has installed closed-circuit cameras and drone cameras on every route leading to Nepal.

These cameras have been put on the SSB posts beside the main roads. "Metal detectors have been installed at Sonauli and Tuthibari outposts on the India-Nepal border," Meena said.

A high-intensity explosion ripped through a slow-moving car at a traffic signal near the Red Fort metro station in New Delhi on Monday evening, killing at least 12 people and gutting several vehicles, officials said.

Twenty people, including two women, were injured in the blast that took place on a busy evening when the area was milling with people. The injured were taken to the LNJP Hospital, a few kilometres away.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday ordered the police to remain on high alert in the wake of the blast. He sought details of the incident from Director General of Police (DGP) Rajeev Krishna, an official statement said.

Krishna issued a series of instructions to district police chiefs, asking them to stay on the ground and personally supervise security in sensitive and crowded areas.

Quick Response Teams (QRT), Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS), bomb disposal squads, and dog squads have been kept on standby, while foot patrol has been intensified, he said.

Police have been told to ensure strict checking of vehicles and keep a vigilant eye on metro stations, bus stands, railway stations, malls, and cinemas without causing inconvenience to the public, the DGP said in his directive.

Real-time analysis of CCTV feeds and active engagement of intelligence and local information networks have been ordered to ensure prompt reporting of any suspicious persons or activities. PTI COR NAV MPL MPL