Security cameras at airports ‘not fully functional’

What could be a serious security threat, it was revealed on Thursday that the high-resolution cameras installed at various airports of the country including the Jinnah International Airport, Karachi, are not fully functional for the last one year.

Sources said that the cameras were not in a fully working condition because of differences between the institutions.

The monitoring room of these cameras, which is administratively with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), could not be handed over to any department.

Sources opined that these cameras, installed under the border management system, would be controlled by the Federal Investigation Agency and Anti-Narcotics Force and customs.

It was said that capturing the images of suspicious people and the scanning system at the airports was the responsibility of the Airport Security Force.

The high-resolution cameras have been installed in cooperation with Japan at Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad and Multan airports. They are able to capture the still images of individuals entering the terminal.

Sources said that 60 per cent blurred image of a person will be made recognisable with the help of these cameras. An alarm bell connected with the camera in the monitoring room will ring on the facial matching of a wanted person with the image already available with the institutions, making the arrest of the suspect possible within shortest possible time.