Fear gripped Delhi after 32 schools simultaneously received bomb threats on Monday, prompting immediate evacuation and massive search operations by the law enforcement agencies.
According to the Delhi Police, the bomb threats have been received at Delhi Public School (Dwarka), BGS International Public School (Dwarka), Shri Venkateshwara School (Dwarka), Global School (Dwarka), Shiksha Bharti Global School (Dwarka), Adarsh World School (Dwarka), Dwarka International School (Dwarka), and Bal Bharti Public School (Dwarka).
The others schools that received the threat include Venkateshwar School (Dwarka), Holy Heart Public School (Dwarka), Paramount International School (Dwarka), CRPF Public School (Dwarka), Indraprastha International School (Dwarka), Gyan Sagar Public School (Dwarka), JBM Public School (Dwarka), Sachdeva Global School (Dwarka), Shiv Vani Model Sr. Secondary School (Dwarka), Saraswati Public School (Dwarka), RMS Convent School (Dwarka), Deep Model Public School (Dwarka), and Kennedy Public School (Dwarka). Veer Public School (Dwarka), Oxford Foundation School (Dwarka), Nav Gyandeep Public School (Dwarka), RM Convent Public School (Dwarka), RD International School, Jai Bharti Public School, CDM School, Sunrise Public School, Shri Ram International School, New Solanki Model Public School, and Andhra School are among the schools that have been targeted.
The Delhi Police, along with several quick-response authorities, including the bomb disposal squad and dog squad, reached the spots, an official said, adding that a cyber team is working to trace the IP address of the sender.
Following a comprehensive search operation, the officers concluded that the bomb threats were a hoax. Nevertheless, one of the officers said, “All students and staff have been evacuated as a precautionary measure. Search operations are underway.”
“We are coordinating with Internet service providers to trace the IP location and will examine whether the same source is behind earlier threats received by other institutions this year,” another senior police officer said.
DPS Dwarka later announced the closure of the school for the day. “The school has been closed on Monday due to unavoidable circumstances. Students travelling by school buses and private vans are being sent back immediately, and teachers on bus duty will share the location updates. Parents are requested to kindly pick up their wards from their respective bus stops. For private commuters, parents are requested to collect their wards directly from the school,” read a statement of the school.
Earlier on July 14, three schools – Navy Children School in Chanakyapuri, CRPF School in Dwarka Sector 16, and CRPF School in Prashant Vihar – received similar threats via e-mail.
A day later, on July 15, three more institutions – St. Thomas School in Dwarka, St. Stephen’s College, and a school in Rohini – were targeted. Again, on July 16, five schools received bomb threats via email, including St. Thomas School in Dwarka, Vasant Valley School in Vasant Kunj, The Mother’s International School in Hauz Khas, Richmond Global School in Paschim Vihar, and Sardar Patel Vidyalaya in Lodhi Estate.
On July 18, more than 45 schools were the target of bomb threats across Delhi, including Rohini, Pitampura, Paschim Vihar, South Delhi, and Central Delhi. Six schools in Dwarka also reportedly received threats during July.
Additionally, three Delhi University colleges – IP College for Women, Hindu College, and Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) – also received bomb threats. During the probe into the matter, the Delhi Police apprehended a 12-year-old child for sending bomb threat emails to St. Stephen’s College and St. Thomas School in Dwarka on July 15. Later, the police detained the child for questioning and released him after counselling.
According to the police officer, while all of these incidents were declared hoax after a thorough probe, every case is treated with full seriousness. “Even if these are hoaxes, they cause panic among students and parents alike. We are pursuing every lead to identify and take strict action against those behind such acts,” he added.
The police said investigations into the earlier incidents are still ongoing and are trying to ascertain if the repeated threats, austensibly carried out in a coordinated manner, are part of a pattern. Between January and August, over 74 educational institutions – 70 schools and four colleges across Delhi-NCR – have received similar threats, according to the data.
On January 8 and 9, more than 10 schools, including DPS Vasant Vihar, Amity School in Saket, Salwan Public School, and Modern School in Vasant Vihar, were targeted.
Less than a month later, on February 5, four Noida schools received threats via email. On February 7, three institutions –Ahlcon International School in Mayur Vihar Phase-1, Shiv Nadar School in Noida, and St. Stephen’s College in Delhi – were targeted.