Govt draws plan to check nuclear weapons

The Govt has devised 3 Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to deal with terrorist attacks.

With a view to prevent use of chemical and biological weapons by terrorists, the Government has devised three Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to deal with terrorist attacks involving use of Radiological, Nuclear Materials, Biological Agents and Chemical Weapons (RNBC).

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These SOPs provide for identification of potential targets, formation and training of specialist response teams, Home Ministry sources said on Sunday.

They said that SOPs for responding to terrorist attacks using chemical weapons and involving use of radioactive materials have been circulated to concerned ministries and state governments for drawing up their individual SOPs and action plans and also initiate necessary preparedness measures.

The sources, however, said that so far no inputs have come to the notice of the Government regarding terrorists acquiring chemical and biological weapons and radioactivity gadgets for use against civilian population.

They said four of the eight battalions of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been earmarked specially for RNBC disaster or terrorist strikes.

On steps taken by the Government to check acquisition of such weapons by terrorists, they said the establishments and institutions where Radiological and Nuclear Materials and Chemicals and Biological Agents are produced or procured for use have "adequate failsafe security stipulations" to check such items from being procured by unauthorised persons.