On a weekday morning in Delhi, the first alert usually arrives quietly – not with sirens or flashing lights, but as an email forwarded by a school administrator to the police control room. Within minutes, a familiar chain of events begins across the city. A message is relayed to the nearest police station. Bomb detection teams are alerted. Dog handlers begin preparing their K9 units. Vehicles carrying specialised equipment roll out toward schools where hundreds of students are already being ushered out of classrooms.
Over the past two years, this routine has played out again and again across the national capital – even though every single bomb threat so far has turned out to be false. For the Delhi Police’s Bomb Detection Team (BDT) and Bomb Disposal Squad (BDS), however, every call must be treated as real. “Our teams are on call round the clock for such alerts,” one officer said. “Compared to earlier years, our teams are now responding to far more alerts linked to schools,” another officer said.
The System That Activates After Every Threat
The response begins at the Police Control Room (PCR). Once a threat is reported, specialised units are deployed almost immediately. Bomb disposal teams, bomb detection units, and the Dog Squad are sent to the site together. “The Dog Squad, BDT and BDS operate as a coordinated team during every response,” a BDT officer said.
Schools that receive threats are evacuated while police begin systematic searches of the premises. Sniffer dogs are usually the first to enter the buildings alongside detection teams carrying handheld sensors and scanning devices.
If anything suspicious is located, the bomb disposal unit takes over.
Meanwhile, local police secure the surrounding area to prevent panic. Personnel from the Delhi Fire Services and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) remain on standby during the operation.
“Every classroom, corridor and open space is thoroughly checked,” the BDT officer said.
Only after the entire campus has been searched is the threat officially declared a hoax.
A Wave Of Emails Targeting Schools
The scale of the problem has grown steadily since 2024. Police say more than 500 schools across Delhi have received threatening emails over the past two years. In total, investigators have recorded over 50 such emails sent from different accounts. Hospitals, airports, airlines, courts, prisons and government offices have also occasionally been targeted.
Many schools have received repeated threats. In the last six months alone, more than 100 schools have been threatened multiple times.
A senior police officer said schools now follow standard operating procedures whenever such alerts arrive. “Schools have been advised to evacuate students calmly to avoid panic,” the officer said.
The First Shock: May 2024
The crisis first erupted in early May 2024. Nearly 200 schools across the city received identical emails sent from the address sawariim@mail.ru. “Kill them wherever you meet them and drive them out from the places from which they drove you,” the message said. “There are many explosive devices in the school.”
For investigators, the scale of the email campaign was unprecedented. Police also noted that the word “Sawarim” had appeared in propaganda linked to the Islamic State (ISIS), including the chant “Salil al-Sawarim”.
Since the email domain was based in Russia, investigators sought assistance through Interpol’s National Central Bureau in Moscow. But the trail quickly became difficult to follow. Officials believe the sender used virtual private networks (VPNs) to conceal their digital footprint.
Why The Senders Are Hard To Trace
Investigators say most of the threatening emails are routed through complex anonymity networks. A senior police officer said many of them pass through VPN servers, Tor networks, and proxy services located in different countries.
“Some of the domains appear to originate from Europe, but the actual senders are hidden behind VPNs and proxy servers,” the officer said.
Cybersecurity experts say such techniques are designed specifically to frustrate investigations.
This means investigators must rely on digital forensics, behavioural analysis and international cooperation – processes that often take months.
When The Culprits Turn Out To Be Students
Despite the serious nature of the threats, some cases have had unexpectedly mundane explanations. Police have previously traced several threatening emails to school students who sent them as pranks. Some admitted they hoped exams would be cancelled or schools would be shut for the day.
In January 2025, police identified a student who had allegedly sent threats to more than 100 schools. Investigators were able to trace him after he forgot to activate a VPN while sending the final email.
He later told police he had done it for “fun”.
Another case in July 2025 involved a 12-year-old boy who sent threats to two institutions.
In yet another case, a Class 8 student confessed he had emailed several schools simply because he wanted them all to close for the day.
A City That Stays On Alert
The repeated threats have also drawn attention from the courts. In November 2024, the Delhi High Court directed the Delhi government and police to clearly define responsibilities for responding to bomb threats across institutions. During the hearing, police said the city had only five Bomb Disposal Squads and 18 Bomb Detection Teams responsible for protecting more than 4,600 schools.
Officials say the strength of these units is now being increased. The Dog Squad is also expanding its number of trained K9 units.
“These units are part of Delhi’s constant security preparedness and are also deployed during major events and VVIP movements,” an official said. For the officers who respond to each alert, however, the routine remains unchanged.
Every threat must be treated as real – until proven otherwise.
