44 schools in Bengaluru have received bomb threat
Several bomb squads and sniffer dogs were called in after multiple schools in Bengaluru received an email with a bomb threat on their premises on Friday.
The city was put on an alert and bomb squads were dispatched after as many as 44 schools in Bengaluru received bomb threat calls.
In a video posted by the news agency ANI, bomb disposal officers can be seen with a sniffer dog inspecting a school in Anekal.
"Several schools have received threatening mail...We have sent bomb squads everywhere," Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayanand told reporters.
"Even before, such calls were received by us but when we inspected, they all turned out to be fake calls," he added.
The schools in Bengaluru received an email with a bomb threat on Friday morning, following which the students and staff were evacuated from the premises.
The email claimed that explosives had been planted on school premises and threatened to kill children and staff.
"We received a call from the command center and immediately rushed our teams to schools which are located in different parts of the city. All students and staff have been safely evacuated from the school premises and a thorough search operation is being carried out," a senior police officer said.
So far, nothing suspicious has been found yet and prima facie looks like it's a hoax message, he added.
Karnataka Home Minister G Prameshwara also said that they are verifying the source of the email.
"We are taking this seriously. I have informed the police to check this on priority," he said.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar visited one of the schools that received the bomb threat and took information from the school and the police about the situation.
"I was a bit dismayed after seeing the news on TV, as some schools I know and the one near my house were also mentioned. So I went out to check. The police have shown me the mail. Prima facie, it appears to be fake (hoax). But we should be cautious," he said
He also appealed to parents not to worry and said their children would be safe.
"Some mischief mongers might have done this... We will nab them in 24 hours. Cyber crime police are active, they are doing their job... We should also be cautious and should not neglect," he added.