2ND LEAD (Adds details)

Indian PM's Special Protection Group personnel arrive in Colombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 15 July 2008, 09:55 GMT]
70 members of the Indian Special Protection Group (SPG), which provides proximate security to the Prime Minister of India and the members of his immediate family, have arrived in Colombo Sunday for security preparations for the upcoming SAARC summit, diplomatic sources in Colombo said. In addition to the SPG personnel, the Indian government has sought permission from Sri Lanka to bring three naval ships, which will be anchored in the outer-harbour of Colombo during the summit. The sources also added that there will be some air cover as well.

National security adviser M K Narayanan is personally looking into the issue due to the "high threat perception" in Sri Lanka, Times of India reported.

A second batch of 70 SPG personnel will arrive in Colombo shortly.

The SPG squads will be stationed in the first and second rings to provide proximate security when Indian Prime Minister Singh visits the SAARC summit.

Proximate security includes protection provided from close quarters, during journey by road, rail, aircraft, watercraft or on foot or any other means of transport, according to GlobalSecurity.org. The security also covers the places of functions, engagements, residence or halt.

"...security cover will be bolstered by the three Indian warships, including a Delhi-class destroyer and a Rajput-class destroyer, equipped with Sea King and Chetak helicopters," Times of India report said.

The 6,900-tonne Delhi-class destroyer, with a 360-crew, for instance, is "a power-projection warship" capable of operating even in an NBC (nuclear-chemical-biological) environment, with a wide array of missiles and weapon systems, the report added.

External Links:

IT:

Indian warships to shield PM during SAARC meet in Lanka