Chandigarh moots underground nuke shelter for 'top brass'

ladder

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Chandigarh moots underground nuke shelter for 'top brass'
Of all places in the world that might be in the direct line of fire of nuclear and chemical warfare, Chandigarh city is most worried.
The Chandigarh administration has mooted setting up of an underground safe house shelter for its "top brass" in case of a chemical, biological, radioactive and nuclear (CBRN) attack on the city.

This "CBRN safe house" — to cost approximately Rs 40 crore — would be built 2 to 5 metres underground and could house the city's top IAS and IPS officers for at least seven days in an emergency, according to the minutes of the meetings and memo sent by former IGP, P K Srivastava, to the UT Home Secretary, Anil Kumar, (copies of which have been accessed by The Sunday Express).

Though there is little information available in the public domain on CBRN safe houses, it is reliably learnt that such facilities have been set up by the Army across the country. Chandigarh administration, however, is probably the first civil administration in the country keen on saving its top bureaucrats and police officers. In others nations, including the US and some European countries, safe houses are built for the community near hospitals and schools.

According to sources, the idea of an underground control room for the city's police was announced in 2012 by former IG P K Srivastava. It was pointed out that Chandigarh was following the footsteps of Delhi and Mumbai police. However, over the months, the idea of underground control room gave way to that of a "safe house" for VVIPs. These "integrated field shelters" could be used for several days and have their own source for power, water and sewage disposal.

Later, a UP-based company which had some experience of setting up such a facility, claimed in a presentation that it worked under the guidance of the Defense Research Development Organisation and proposed a basic underground bunk-based structure for 30 people. But the Chandigarh administration was reportedly not impressed.

"We not only wanted a functional underground control room in case of a CBRN attack but also required a safe house for 10-15 VVIPs, conference facility and provision to run the government from there," according to a note written by a police officer.

"This underground control room and safe house provides 96 hours of safety for 10-12 VVIPs, 8 policemen and support staff, conference facility and other decontamination chambers," added the note.
Chandigarh moots underground nuke shelter for 'top brass' - Indian Express
 

Dovah

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Shouldn't these facilities be available to only essential military personnel? What good would IAS and IPS do after initial strike on a city?
 
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ladder

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Shouldn't these facilities be available to only essential military personnel? What good would IAS and IPS do once after initial strike on a city?
No lowly IAS or IPS will be allowed inside during a real crisis. Only netas and his/her family will be allowed.
As because mentioning real motive may cause anger, it's only for namesake that it mentions IPS and IAS.
 

The Last Stand

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Shouldn't these facilities be available to only essential military personnel? What good would IAS and IPS do once after initial strike on a city?
My question would be different.

Is 40 crore enough for making these shelters completely radiation proof, especially if they are underground and are costly to build in any case?

Just saying, radiation shielding is supposed to be pretty costly, just how powerful of a weapon do they plan to build shields from?
 

Abhijeet Dey

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Does this mean Pakistan's nuclear weapons may be handed over to rogue elements such as Lashkar-e-Toiba?:shocked:
 

tramp

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Will be just another multi billion scam in the end. Though the amount mentioned may be low now, there will be further outlay in years to come.
 

ladder

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Does this mean Pakistan's nuclear weapons may be handed over to rogue elements such as Lashkar-e-Toiba?:shocked:
No, It's just that some boss/politico in some department in Chandigarh's local administration went paranoiac by watching the news webcast from across the border and his/her subordinate walked the extra mile by inviting contenders to please him/her.
 

Dovah

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My question would be different.

Is 40 crore enough for making these shelters completely radiation proof, especially if they are underground and are costly to build in any case?

Just saying, radiation shielding is supposed to be pretty costly, just how powerful of a weapon do they plan to build shields from?
Radiation shielding is not costly, concrete alone can provide effective shielding as long as the shelter is not too close to the site of the blast (in which case they'd be fried like a chicken in a tandoor, anyway). 40 cr. in India is adequate with 7 days worth of supplies and storage.

They're counting on radiation levels to die off in in 7 days(which they would, theoretically) but I don't understand how do they plan to tackle nuclear fallout.
 

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