Patel worried about airport VIP gate

As Chief Minister Ashok Chavan and senior officials tried to draw up a plan to relocate 80,000 hutments from airport land, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel had another concern on his mind.

As Chief Minister Ashok Chavan and senior officials tried to draw up a plan to relocate 80,000 hutments from airport land, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel had another concern on his mind.

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He asked that Gate No 8, which allows VIPs access to the tarmac, be secured. "Please do something immediately," Patel told Chavan on Friday.

A senior officer, who attended the meeting, said on condition of anonymity that Patel's concern was that the access road to the Gate, which is on the Kalina side, had free civilian movement.

"Slum-dwellers are rarely subjected to security checks. Hence, the threat [of attack or sabotage] exists," the officer said.