When I arrived at my hotel in Delhi late Monday night, I was surprised to see the hotel access road blocked by a heavy gate manned by guards. As my driver approached the gate, he popped the hood and trunk of the taxi before stopping. One guard opened the hood and inspected the engine compartment with a flashlight while the other opened the trunk and ran a metal-detecting wand over my suitcase. After the guards waved us in we drove to the hotel entrance where I had to put my backpack through an airport type scanner and I had to walk through a metal detector. I suspected, and my local contacts later confirmed that these security measures were put in place following the terror attacks in Mumbai last year where Pakistani extremists invaded three hotels and killed many hostages. The Indian Government now mandates that all hotels in the country be secured in this manner. Sure enough, every hotel I have stayed in this week so far (4 and counting...) all had similar measures in place.
Airports in India are also heavily secured. You are not allowed inside the terminal building at all if you dont have ID and a printout confirming you have a ticket. Every passenger gets a full security scan and pat down, and they have segregated security lines for men and women.
I suppose this should make me feel more secure, but it doesn't...
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| Secured entrance to the La Meriden in Ahmedabad |
Airports in India are also heavily secured. You are not allowed inside the terminal building at all if you dont have ID and a printout confirming you have a ticket. Every passenger gets a full security scan and pat down, and they have segregated security lines for men and women.
I suppose this should make me feel more secure, but it doesn't...
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