The Ministry of Civil Aviation is considering legislative action to address the threat posed by fake bomb threats targeting airlines. Civil Aviation Minister K. Ramamohan Naidu stated that steps will be taken to impose strict penalties on those responsible for issuing these false bomb threats.
Despite strict regulations from the government and DGCA, bomb threats targeting airplanes have continued to surface. According to sources, more than 100 flights operated by various Indian airlines received bomb threats on Tuesday alone.Reports indicate that approximately 36 Air India flights and 35 IndiGo flights received such threats, while Vistara also received bomb threats for 32 of its flights. Over the past 16 days, more than 510 domestic and international flights have received bomb threats. Almost all of these were determined to be hoaxes upon investigation, with most threats being posted through social media.An Air India spokesperson stated that many of these threats were received via social media platforms. Upon receiving a threat, the airline followed the standard protocol by alerting relevant authorities and departments. Security checks were conducted in accordance with regulatory guidelines.On Tuesday, an official mentioned that a case has been filed by Mumbai Police against an unknown individual after bomb threats were made to three airlines through their X handles. IndiGo, Air India, and Vistara all received threats on Monday, which later turned out to be false. Mumbai Police registered 14 FIRs in October alone regarding bomb threats to airlines.Due to these fake threats, some flights have had to make emergency landings, and others had to be rerouted, causing delays and affecting passenger schedules. This has also resulted in financial losses for airlines.The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has asked social media platforms to adhere to their responsibilities and take down or disable access to misinformation within a strict timeframe, as per IT regulations, due to the ongoing wave of bomb threats.The Ministry of Civil Aviation is also considering legislative measures to counter the issue of fake bomb threats targeting airlines. Civil Aviation Minister K. Ramamohan Naidu stated that steps will be taken to impose strict penalties on those making these false bomb threats.In light of the rising number of false bomb threats, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology previously instructed social media platforms to exercise caution and remove or restrict access to such misinformation as quickly as possible in accordance with IT regulations.
