Thursday, July 31, 2008

Airport Security

Was in Nagpur and lost my wallet and as a consequence lost all identification cards i possesed. Did the necessary stuff, went amd lodged a police complaint etc etc etc, but my biggest worry was that how will I reach Delhi, I only have a print out of my e ticket with no I card to go with it..... so I could clearly envisage a lot of pleading and explaining at the Nagpur airport and was a bit nervous about the whole thing as apparently there is a lot of security check at airports being good targets for terrorist attacks. I also had a collegue with me for moral support and to make sure that I do get on to some plane going in the direction of delhi.
Step 1 the entrace of the airport I show my e ticket print out and with confidence stroll into the airport ...phew that was easy now comes the real trouble...step 2 check in: Here I am rehearsing my story and with all the relevant papers in my hand including my boarding pass of the flight that I had taken to reach Nagpur just in case I need it. I hand over my e ticket and am all ready to vomit my story on the executive sitting there, after 2 minutes of silence the executive asks me if I have any check in baggage and if I have any seat preference no and window is the answer she receives and then she smiles at me hands me my boarding pass and wishes me a happy journey...all this while she is addressing me with the name printed on the e ticket, but she has no clue whether I am that person or not and just like that with a print out in hand i got into a flight to Delhi......imagine!
Cut to my return trip from Sangli, Pune airport, I have an e ticket in my hand and my i card, I am let in at the entrance of the airport after the security guard has held my e ticket for more that 15 secs and looked at it... I go to the counter of Jet lite and am waiting for my boarding pass.. the executive is taking some time and is shaking her head, I can't understand what is wrong then she informs me that the print out I have handed to her is for an e ticket of 29th June and not July and that she has checked her records for todays flight and my name is not on her records, some franctic phone calls later I am told that I am booked on the Air India flight for Delhi. I rush to the counter for check in and inform the executive that I am on the flight to delhi and dont have a print out of my ticket so on the basis of my I card if she could check me in she is the only one who raises her eyebrow looks at me suspiciously and asks how did you get into the airport?? I tell her that I had an incorrect print out in my hand and therefore the mix up... again I get my boarding pass and am comfortably seated in the plane for reaching Delhi. BTW this is happenning when the police in the country is going crazy discovering live bombs all over the place and there is a red alert in the country.
Like really I have nothing to say.......... either our security agencies will get all extreme and check people to the barest minimum and then recheck them ( and example is the film Aamir) or just let anyone waltz pass them without even doing the basic minimum required. Its just amazing! If this is our plan and idea of beefed up security I think i am any day safer sitting at home. What say?

3 comments:

Muthu said...

Hahahahhaahaaaaa.........well for starters, my father would have agreed with you. Umpteen times he has embarrassed me no end when he would point a thing or two to the security guys and hold up the line. Secondly, I must introduce both Suchi and you to George Carlin....he can be quite obnoxious but a great stand uo comedian nevertheless. Check him out on You tube and prepare to fall off your chairs laughing. Thirdly I think there are ways and means to find out if a person and his/her situation is genuine or not and the people in charge of security are trained eyes in this.....aur phir galti toh sabse hoti hai

anugem said...

Dont know about trained eye and galti yaar muthu, but to me this looked like very basic stuff whcih is also not being done... anyways will check out the guy and share laughs:-)

Tinky Toinkers said...

tch. sad but true. have been from delhi to mumbai and back with just e-tickets and no ids shown as well.