CISF to video-record boarding passes, no stamping to avoid contact

The webcam recording will be synchronised with the CCTV camera footage of the security hold area (SHA) making it easy for the security personnel to track any passenger later if need be, the officers said.

The boarding passes of passengers flying out of Delhi airport, once flight operations resume, will be video recorded instead of being stamped by the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), a spokesperson said on Thursday.

CISF personnel seen wearing protective headgear during lockdown, in Terminal 3 of IGI Airport, New Delhi. (Vipin Kumar/ Hindustan Times)

Senior officers said officers deployed to screen passengers will be given a webcam each to record their boarding passes.

The webcam recording will be synchronised with the CCTV camera footage of the security hold area (SHA) making it easy for the security personnel to track any passenger later if need be, the officers said.

The new method has been adopted following one of the directions from the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) issued Wednesday, asking CISF, the force that secures the airport, to stop stamping the boarding passes as a measure to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

“Our men who are stationed at the security check area, with a stamp, will now be given a webcam each. They’ll record every boarding pass. This is to ensure zero direct contact between passengers and our officers. The recordings will be collected as a database and can be used whenever required,” a senior officer from the airport, who wished not to be named, said.

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The officer said that the new method shall cause no additional delay. “However, we are yet to get results. Stamping of boarding passes did not take time and we hope recording, which will only take a few seconds, will also not take much time,” the officer added.

In one of its earlier orders, dated March 19, the BCAS had said, “It is learnt that one of the most common methods of transmission of Covid-19 seems to be through infected surfaces. It is, therefore, desirable to avoid touching surfaces that might be infected due to human touch.”

In the same order issued Wednesday BCAS said passengers are being advised to use hand sanitiser frequently while travelling during the Covid-19 pandemic. After the orders were given, it was also decided to allow passengers to carry sanitiser up to a limit of 350ml in their handbag.

Indira Gandhi International airport, like other airports in the country, is yet to start passenger flights. All domestic flights in the country were suspended March 25 onwards, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of Covid-19. However, repatriation flights, medical evacuation flights and cargo flights have been allowed to operate.