A bomb threat email received at Kolkata Airport on Thursday afternoon prompted the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) to begin a detailed search and move passengers away from parts of the facility as a precaution, according to a report by Sangbad Pratidin. No explosive device had been recovered at the time of reporting.
The email reportedly claimed that a bomb had been placed inside the airport and could explode at any moment. The threat led security personnel to alert passengers and clear areas of the airport as far as practicable while search operations began.
The response placed CISF, which is responsible for security at India’s major airports, at the centre of the immediate operation. The supplied report said personnel started a comprehensive search of the airport premises after the email was received. It did not provide details of a confirmed device, a specific terminal, or any flight cancellations or delays.
The report said cyber specialists had also begun examining who sent the email and where it originated. At the time of publication, investigators had not identified the sender. The absence of a recovered explosive meant that the threat remained unsubstantiated, although security agencies continued to treat it as a matter requiring a precautionary response.
For an airport, even an unconfirmed threat can have immediate operational consequences. Passenger movement may be restricted, access points can be scrutinised more closely and security teams must examine public areas, baggage-related spaces and other sensitive zones before normal operations can be fully assured. The supplied report did not state when the search would conclude or whether airport operations had returned to normal.
The incident came about a week after what the report described as the Flydubai cockpit incident involving an Israel-bound flight. It also referred to warnings by Israel’s ambassador to India, Reuven Azar, about a possible new wave of extremist Islamist attacks and to a decision to strengthen security at airports, including Kolkata’s airport. Those broader security concerns were presented as context for the heightened sensitivity surrounding the email threat, not as evidence linking the Kolkata incident to any wider network.
The report did not establish whether the message was a hoax, identify a suspect or confirm a connection with the earlier Flydubai incident. It said some people believed the email may have been intended only to create fear, while cyber experts continued to investigate its origin.
The next steps identified in the report were the completion of the CISF search and the cyber investigation into the sender and source of the email. Any confirmation about explosives, arrests, flight operations or the restoration of normal passenger movement was not available in the supplied account.
