Southern States - Tamil Nadu   

Slithering training for STF begins at Sulur airbase

By V.S. Palaniappan

Coimbatore May 3. The Air Force has begun a training session in slithering operations for a group of Special Task Force personnel at the Sulur airbase here.

The Tamil Nadu STF is the first police force in the country undergoing training in slithering operations and that too in a defence airbase.

The week-long training, begun on Thursday, is aimed at having a core operations team ready at the STF base camp at Sathyamangalam in the event of a close encounter with the forest brigand, Veerappan, or his gang members. Airlifting of reinforcements is aimed at minimising loss of time in reaching a spot, following pointed intelligence on the movements of the bandit.

Instant reaction and rushing of teams is expected to enhance the prospects of a positive result, say STF officials. When contacted, R. Nataraj, Additional Director-General of Police (Tamil Nadu-STF) told The Hindu that 35 personnel had been chosen to undergo the training imparted by IAF instructors and experts in air-aided operations.

This core operations team led by N. K. Senthamaraikannan and Shanmugavelu, Superintendents of Police, comprises constables, sub-inspectors, inspectors and DSPs. The curriculum includes ground training as well as ground surveillance training while being air-borne.

An MI-8 chopper was also being used for imparting training. The 8-12 hour training a day included three hours of theory and instructions on dos and dont's while flying and while descending from the chopper.

The personnel would be airdropped from a height of 30 metres with a rope. But, it was not like slithering down a building or between two buildings with a waistband, which provided grip, besides the climber himself firmly to holding to the rope. In airdropping, the men would have to use a special type of glove and a rope to minimise friction. They would have to slither down the rope carrying not only their own weight but also 10-15 kg haversack bags with binoculars and communication equipment, besides puffed rice, flat rice, water cans and basic medicines. All these in addition to weapons and ammunition.

On completion of training, these men would fly sorties for fine-tuning their skills. The teams would be kept in a state of preparedness at the base camp for being airlifted to the spot where the movements of the Veerappan gang were noticed, said the ADGP. On the heels of the training for the Tamil Nadu STF, the Karnataka STF was likely to follow suit, STF sources said.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Southern States

News: Front Page | National | Southern States | Other States | International | Opinion | Business | Sport | Miscellaneous |
Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary |

Stories in this Section

• Govt.-medicos talks end in stalemate
• Vellore student tops in engg. in TNPCEE
• 3 per cent horizontal quota in educational institutions for disabled
• More govt. colleges only way out, say medicos
• Passenger handling capacity poised for massive growth
• Mammalian eggs created from embryonic stem cells
• G.V. commits suicide
• Slithering training for STF begins at Sulur airbase
• `SARS wards needed, despite WHO declaration'
• Health Minister clarifies

Copyright © 2003, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu