There are 170 agencies active at Tribhuvan International Airport, including the police, armed forces, immigration, customs, banks, and currency exchange counters, but there is no unified command, and instead, there is duplication of responsibilities among various agencies. There is no coordination.
What you should know
Even after 26 years since the hijacking of an Indian Airlines plane from Tribhuvan Airport in Kathmandu, the nightmare continues to burn. The fact that an airport that took off from its own territory was captured by hijackers has left Nepal with a shameful scar. On the other hand, after that incident, it was established in the international world that the security system at Tribhuvan Airport was weak, but trust has not been restored for two and a half decades.
In the meantime, several advanced technologies have been developed and used here to make the airport security system reliable. However, details of smuggling from gold to humans from the airport have been made public over time. This continues to undermine Nepal's claims.
Nepal needs to work tirelessly to restore the lost trust in the international community by regulating and monitoring all activities within the airport, and discouraging any actions that may be done with wrong intentions. For that, implementing the practical suggestions given by various reports can be a starting point.
On December 24, 1999, at 4:27 pm, an Indian Airlines plane flying to Delhi was hijacked with 178 passengers and 11 crew members, including 8 Nepalis, 150 Indians and 11 members of the crew. The plane then flew to Amritsar Airport in India, Lahore in Pakistan, Kabul in Afghanistan (without landing), Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, and finally reached Kandahar in Afghanistan.
Only then did the hijackers clarify their purpose. The hijackers had demanded the release of 36 members of the Kashmiri separatist group, including Maulana Azhar Masood (who was then in an Indian jail on charges of inciting terrorism), as ransom.
They had also demanded $200 million. The plane was freed after six days of negotiations. In the backdrop of this incident, before boarding an Indian plane after passing through Nepal's immigration and security, passengers have to enter a cabin box, where Indian security personnel check them.
In fact, gold has been regularly smuggled from Tribhuvan Airport. From time to time, the gold that is seized is found to be in kilos. On 22 Mangsir, 2080, the customs office at the airport arrested Chandra Ghale with 14 kg of smuggled gold. Dollars, gold, drugs, drones and other electronic devices and expensive items have also been smuggled. There is no accounting for the unaccounted gold and items.
The statement made by Charles Sobhraj, known as the 'Bikini Killer', who disparaged the security system of Tribhuvan Airport, that he 'can smuggle an elephant through Tribhuvan International Airport' is still in the news today. The smuggling incidents and the statements of people like Sobhraj reveal the truth that notorious people have established an empire of criminal activities through immigration. For this reason, various countries and organizations have expressed distrust in the airport's security system. To dismantle it, the state has not been able to show the necessary reforms in its security strategy and the diplomatic activity that needs to be increased to gain trust.
The high-level investigation committee led by retired Inspector General of Police Hem Bahadur Singh formed after the hijacking of the Indian plane, the high-level investigation committee led by Joint Secretary Ishwor Raj Poudel to investigate the gold smuggling series in 2074, the committee led by the then Chief Customs Officer Maniram Poudel formed after the arrest of Chandra Ghale, and experts have spoken a lot about the airport's security system.
Not only the employees at the airport, but also people who have obtained passes through various means keep moving around the airport. But there is not much security check and monitoring of the pass holder. There are also people who provide ‘catering’ services, loaders or cleaners who walk from the back of the ‘baggage hold’ to the corridor, and people with passes who are allowed to move around the airport. There is a possibility of their misuse. This should be managed.
Those who do illegal activities by circumventing the airport system are adopting new methods, they are using high-level technology. Similarly, people involved in terrorism and various other crimes may be coming and going. That is why special vigilance and caution are required among security personnel. For this, high-capacity technology and manpower are required to identify them and foil their plans.
Although technology is widely used at the airport, there is a lack of adequate training for security personnel. On the other hand, the use of CC cameras has not been streamlined. CCTV cameras are not available in all areas, and even the cameras that are available have not been able to help in some investigations.
When the committee led by Poudel requested three months of CCTV records for the airport arrivals, they received only 21 days of 'data', saying there was no backup. CCTV footage from some places was not provided because the cameras were broken. This kind of negligence is not appropriate in sensitive places. CCTV cameras should be installed in such a way that they can be accessed in all areas and arrangements should be made to use them for collecting evidence when needed.
Similarly, the airport should make arrangements to keep employees working in various service providers such as the cashier's office, currency exchange counter, CIP lounge, etc. under surveillance even when they are not on duty at the airport. Because, suspicion and surveillance should be increased on all sides. The movement of vehicles within the airport and their contact with other vehicles should be systematized, and surveillance should be increased.
The state's intelligence apparatus should be strengthened. The political protection given to suspects should end. There are 170 agencies active at Tribhuvan International Airport, including the police, armed forces, immigration, customs, banks, and currency exchange counters, but there is no unified command, rather there is duplication of responsibilities among various agencies. There is no coordination. Therefore, effective results can be achieved by establishing a joint coordination cell and operating collectively.
