Of the 120 vehicles, there are around 60 left-hand drive vehicles. The cars were provided to the paramilitary force by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA)
As part of the preparation for ferrying heads of State in and around Delhi during the G20 summit next week in India, around 450 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel have been trained in driving left-handed bullet-proof cars for the VVIPs and VIPs, people aware of the matter said on Friday.
“CRPF has trained 450 personnel as drivers and personal security officers who will be part of the Closed Protection Team (CPT) with the heads of the states during the G20 summit. They will also drive bulletproof left-hand drive vehicles,” CRPF officials said.
The official said that CRPF has received around 120 vehicles, of which around 45 are bulletproof, which will be exclusively used by the heads of the States.
Of the 120 vehicles, there are around 60 left-hand drive vehicles. The cars were provided to the paramilitary force by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
Officials said that at least 400 CRPF personnel will be deployed in the movement of VVIPs at the G20 Summit on September 9 and 10. At least 48 anti-sabotage teams with dog squad of CRPF will be conducting checking of hotels and venues, added the official.
For security reasons, each head of state has been assigned a bulletproof car during their stay in the national capital. While the summit is on September 9 and 10, the guests will start arriving in India days ahead of the summit.
“Barring one or two heads of state such as the US President who will bring his own vehicle, all the other guests will be driven in the bulletproof luxury cars provided by the Indian government. The CRPF has been assigned the task of driving this vehicle and others in the convoy of the guest,” said an official aware of the development.
“In the past few weeks, our personnel have trained in some of the vehicles that were assigned to us. For the training, CRPF personnel first drove in an Audi left-hand drive bulletproof vehicle. Later we also got cars from Mercedes and BMW. A fleet of Genesis cars was also inducted for training last week. These are the same vehicles that will be used for ferrying the guests,” said the official.
A second official said that all the 450 drivers are those who have worked in the Special Protection Group (SPG) before. SPG is India’s elite protection force, which is responsible for the security of the prime minister in India and abroad.
Parts of Delhi are expected to transform into a fortress in this period, with exclusive corridors to facilitate the movement of cars carrying the leaders and delegates from hotels to the meeting venue.
“These 850 highly trained personnel are the ones who will be in close proximity to the heads of States. They will be with the heads of States once they land in the country. These are the best candidates selected from CRPF’s VIP security wing,” the second official said.