Bomb threat forces Indian plane to make emergency landing

An Indian passenger plane has made an emergency landing in the central city of Nagpur following a hoax bomb threat.

On Saturday, the GoAir airline flight G8 243, which was carrying 150 passengers from the eastern city of Bhubaneshwar westwards to Mumbai, received an anonymous call that a bomb had been planted aboard.

The flight took off “at 8.20 a.m. [local time] and post receiving the bomb threat call, was diverted to Nagpur and landed at 9.29 a.m. [local time],” GoAir airline, a Mumbai-based low cost carrier, said in a statement.

Passengers were offloaded and airport security searched the plane and baggage, according to the statement.

It further said “there was no bomb found on board the aircraft” and the passengers “are now being boarded” after the aircraft was authorized to take off again for Mumbai.

The local police is reportedly investigating Saturday’s incident.

Security has been heightened across India ahead of the Republic Day military parade that marks the anniversary of the South Asian state’s democratic constitution taking effect in 1950.

French President Francois Hollande is expected to be among the guests to the event.

On Friday, the National Investigation Agency, India’s anti-terrorism body, arrested a group of terror suspects and seized bomb-making material in a series of nationwide raids.

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