Some items you should never carry in your cabin baggage

An air traveller on Tuesday accidentally fired a bullet from his licensed pistol during the screening process at the Mumbai airport. This has brought to light the fact that many air passengers knowingly or unknowingly carry a lot of items that are not allowed in the hand baggage. They thus have to surrender these articles to the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF).

DNA makes a list of things you better leave at home or put in your checked-in bag rather than let the CISF seize them. “Anything that can be used by passengers as a weapon is seized,” says Jitendra Negi, senior commandant, CISF.

Gun and ammunition: A person can carry only licensed guns and live rounds (bullets), but the rounds should not be loaded. “There are people who wear bullets as pendants, finger-rings or as key chains,” says Negi. “There have been cases of live rounds being found in the bags of relatives of defence personnel. We let them travel but take away the bullets.”

Replicas of guns: One cannot carry toy pistols or replicas. “We ask people not to carry antique weapons or ask them to be registered as checked-in baggage,” he says.

Lighters: Passengers are advised to remove lighters from their handbags and keep them in their registered baggage. “When the passengers argue that the lighter is very costly, we remove the fuel from it, check if it still lights and then let them carry it,” says a CISF official.

Knives, nail-cutters and pairs of scissors: “These are security removed articles (SRA), and we strictly do not allow them in passengers’ hand baggage,” he says.

Any liquid (perfume/shampoo) which is more than 100 ml or glass bottles: “The funniest part here is that people go through the security screening procedure and proceed to the security hold area (SHA) where there are duty-free shops. They can buy duty-free liquor bottles and carry them as cabin luggage,” says an airport official.