RAWALPINDI, March 14: As many as 3000 policemen, including commandos of the Elite Squad, have been deployed to provide the touring Indian cricketers blanket security as they prepared to take on Pakistan in the second One-day International here on Tuesday.

Senior Superintendent of Police, Syed Moravet Ali Shah, in charge of security, told Dawn that they were taking no chances. "We will have 1500 police in and around the stadium while as many are on duty at other points in the city.

"We have set up barricades at the road leading up to the stadium and only those with valid tickets or duty passes will be allowed to go through." The Indians on arrival at the Islamabad Airport on Saturday night were greeted by gun-toting commandos of the elite force who continue to shadow the tourists since their arrival in Pakistan last Wednesday.

The party was quickly transferred to a hotel in Islamabad in buses that were escorted by police vans with sirens wailing. Meanwhile, Nadeem Syed, chief executive of DGM Securities said that as many as 16 walk-through gates will be in place at the stadium by Monday evening. "These will be installed at all the gates."

Close circuit surveillance cameras will also be in operation in and around the stadium, said Nadeem who has provided security equipment for eight previous International matches in Rawalpindi.

"The scanning of spectators will start from the parking lot through vehicle search mirrors after which there will be the walk-through gates. A final scan will then be done through handy metal detectors," he added.