Aviation Minister Lists Out New Measures Put In Place To Stop Epidemic Of Hoax Calls To Airlines

Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu on Monday said that those caught for making hoax bomb calls to airlines will be put on a no-fly list. Naidu said that the Centre is also trying to make amendments to the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against Safety of Civil Aviation (SUASCA) Act, 1982. Over the past week, several Indian and international airlines received a flurry of bomb threats. All of them turned out to be hoaxes. The bomb threats hindered airline operations, causing distress among passengers and pressuring the already hard-pressed aviation security infrastructure. "We want to make it a cognisable offence," Naidu said at a press conference. The Union Minister said that the aviation ministry is in consultation with another ministries such as Home Ministry. He added that the NDA government at the Centre would not compromise the safety and security of passengers. "Even through these are hoax threats we cannot take it lightly.. we have a set protocol," he said. The minister added that around 10 per cent security has been enhanced at airports across the country in the wake of bomb threats.