Women commandos for Z-plus

New Delhi, December 22

In a first, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) is preparing to deploy an exclusive contingent of its women commandos to secure top politicians. The women commandos under the VIP security wing of the CRPF have been trained in an array of duties to protect high-risk personalities, including accompanying them during transits across the country, official sources said.

The commandos will soon be enlisted to secure high-profile protectees granted Z category cover based in the national capital, the sources said. The Z cover is the highest category next only to the SPG protection to the serving Prime Minister and his or her family.

The women commandos have completed their 10-week specialised training in roles like unarmed combat, body frisking and special weapon firing. They are likely to be deployed in VIP security from January next year.

The commandos will be initially deployed to protect high-profile Delhi-based leaders like Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Rahul Gandhi as also former PM Manmohan Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur, the sources said.

These top protectees are provided with an advanced security liaison (ASL) protocol, entailing an advance assessment of venues to be visited by them. — TNS