A 12-member expert committee was formed yesterday to make recommendations in this regard after studying existing security systems at modern airports in other countries.

The committee, headed by Mohammad Mohsin, additional secretary to the home ministry, will submit its report in a month, suggesting immediate, mid-term and long-term measures to develop a unified security system for all the airports.

The joint secretary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism has been made member secretary of the committee that includes representatives from Biman Bangladesh Airlines, Ansar, Customs, Rapid Action Battalion (Rab), Fire Service and intelligence agencies.

The committee will examine the flaws in the airport security system in Bangladesh. Its members in small groups will visit, if necessary, some airports outside the country.

"We have many (security) weaknesses ... our airport security system is not up to the mark," State Minister for Home Affairs Lutfozzaman Babar told reporters yesterday, after an inter-ministerial meeting on airport security held at the home ministry conference room.

He said manpower of the Civil Aviation Authority has not been increased while the airports have not been upgraded with the increase in air traffic and activities at the airports.

Sources said the government has taken the move to upgrade the airport security system following a number of email threats at different airports in the recent months.

The Zia International Airport (ZIA) authorities often receive such anonymous threats, said Babar. He also referred to an email threat to blow up Biman head office.

"We always deal with these threats with appropriately and have taken necessary steps and arrested many people," said the state minister.

The civil aviation authorities on March 23 declared red alert at the ZIA which is still in effect.

While discussing existing security flaws, yesterday's meeting identified the entry of unauthorised people in the airport area, failure to control access to the VIP lounge, and the non-functional closed-circuit television system as some of the key problems.

As an immediate step, the meeting asked for deploying Armed Police Battalion members at the VIP lounge to stop entry of unwanted and unauthorised people.

"Many VIPs enter the lounge with people who are not entitled to it, nor have necessary pass. Government rules are not followed here," State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir told reporters after the meeting.

The meeting also discussed the security at the ZIA cargo complex and ordered deployment of armed police and Rab with dog squads for checking of cargoes. They will work there until installation of scanners for checking the cargoes, said a meeting source.

The meeting directed all the departments concerned including immigration, customs and cargo to impose security rules strictly, make the CCTVs at the airports operational, give proper training to the security personnel and introduce identity cards of separate colour for different zones inside the airports.

The meeting also suggested relocating the cargo complex, which is now situated very close to the runway of ZIA, to elsewhere to minimise security threats.

Secretaries of the home and civil aviation ministries, inspector general of police and officials of the police, Rab and intelligence agencies attended the meeting.