Delhi has asked Calcutta police to almost double their security detail for the Kolkata Knight Riders’ home run in IPL 4.

New Market, Victoria Memorial and at least six other locations in the vicinity of the Eden Gardens will be under strict surveillance, while quick-response teams comprising NSG-trained commandos will man each of the eight posts around the stadium.

“This is the first time we are raising security to these levels, based on specific terror alerts from the Union home ministry,” said a senior officer.

The advisory from Dinakar Gupta, joint director in the Union home ministry, mentions intercepted video messages from al Qaida as the reason for the security alert.

“We have been told that cricket venues are potential targets of terror outfits like Jaish-e-Mohammed and Laskar-e-Toiba. There have been some intercepts of recent video messages by al Qaida leaders goading the foot soldiers to attack such soft targets,” the officer said.

Two low-intensity explosions at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore before an IPL match last year had left at least 15 people, including five security personnel, injured.

“We are expecting a packed stadium for the IPL matches, so there is no question of taking a chance with security,” the officer said.

A team of senior officers, led by commissioner Ranjit Pachnanda, visited the Eden Gardens on Friday to take stock of the arrangements.

The quick-response teams are likely to form the outermost layer of the security ring. The next layer will be the watchtowers manned by personnel equipped with sophisticated weapons and night-vision binoculars.

At least 10 such towers are to be set up around the stadium, including one each behind Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s statue on RR Avenue, near the high court, around the club house and All India Radio.

There will also be sand bunkers with commandos stationed inside.

The galleries have been divided into different categories with an officer of the rank of deputy commissioner of police in charge of each. “The galleries around B, B-1, C and C-1 will form Cluster I,” said an officer.

KKR co-owner Shah Rukh Khan will be seated in one of the corporate boxes in the B and B-1 blocks.