Mumbai Attack II

In the pipeline: Commando strike through stormwater drains

CHENNAI: Devising strategies to quell possible terrorist attacks, Tamil Nadu's commandos are even looking at underground pipes storm water and
sewage drains to move from one point in the city to another in case of a terror attack that blocks roads.

"The Mumbai attack has made us think of new threats and new possibilities. We are studying the possibility of using the city's underground pipelines, especially storm water drains that are empty when there is no rain, to send our commandos into combat. Terrorists sometimes create roadblocks around the core area of their attack, making movement on the surface difficult. Moreover, the only government helicopter in the state is out of bounds for the police and commandos," a police official told TOI.

Metrowater has a maze of 6,000 km of pipes, including sewer lines and drinking water pipes, and the Chennai Corporation maintains 900 km of storm water drains. Corporation commissioner Rajesh Lakhoni and Metrowater managing director Sunil Paliwal said they had not received any official communication from the home department, but would be happy to share the city's underground map with security agencies.

"We've started preparing a geographical information system, which would provide the entire underground data of the city in a digital format. To be completed in a couple of years, this could be useful for the security agencies. About 300 km of storm water drains have diameter of 3x3 ft to 5x5 ft through which a person can pass," Lakhoni said.

Paliwal said sewage lines might not be ideal for use by commandos. "Big sewage lines are only 900 cm in diameter and may have, besides sewage, poisonous gases such as methane, carbon monoxide and hydrogen sulphide. We may have to rid the pipes of these obstructions if they are to be used for the movement of people," he said.

An official involved in training said commandos were trained to pass through such confined spaces and had masks to protect them from noxious gases. As storm water drains enabled easier movement, the use of sewage pipes would only be in extreme cases, he added