GK Photo
Srinagar, June 29: Two days ahead of the start of two-month long Amarnath Yatra, the yatra gots three layers of security manned by the Jammu and Kashmir Police, paramilitary forces, and Army even as induction has been completed.
Besides, high-tech surveillance, both on the ground and aerial to ward off terror threats and ensure a safe and smooth Amarnath Yatra scheduled between July 1 and August 31 this year has also been done.
The three-tier security has been put in place for the entire Amarnath Yatra route, including the mountains in the south and central Kashmir districts of Anantnag and Ganderbal. To facilitate hassle-free and comfortable ‘darshan’ of the Amarnath cave shrine for all the devotees, adequate security arrangements have been made along the entire route of the yatra, right from the point of arrival at the airport, railway station, or bus station to the yatris’ accommodation, base camps and along the Baltal and Pahalgam routes leading up to the cave shrine.
From the past quite some time, top J&K government officials have been engaged in a series of meetings for the safe conduct of the Amarnath Yatra.
This time, officials are hopeful that thousands of yatris from across the country could visit the Amarnath cave shrine up in the mountains in south Kashmir’s Pahalgam and Baltal areas.
“All the security apparatus has been put in place from both the routes,” Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Kashmir, Vijay Kumar told Greater Kashmir. “J&K Police, CRPF, BSF, NDRF, and IB carried out joint surveys of routes twice.”
Kumar said that for the smooth and safe yatra, he has constituted joint teams.
“People have been cooperating and this time too they are cooperating,” he said. “Every effort is being made for a safe and smooth yatra. There is total synergy between all security agencies.”
LG Manoj Sinha, Director General of Police (DGP) Dilbag Singh, and ADGP Kashmir Vijay Kumar held a series of security review meetings with officers from the Army, CRPF, BSF, ITBP, J&K Police, NDRF, and the civil administration for the yatra arrangements.
The senior officers of the Army and other security forces also presented their detailed presentation and shared their inputs and suggestions for strengthening the overall security grid and providing foolproof security cover to the yatris during their forward and return journey.
The officer said the special focus would be laid on regular briefing and debriefing, cut-off timings, elimination of the threat of sticky bombs, improvised electronic devices, grenade lobbing, and drone attacks.
Among the arrangements listed are three-tier security, aerial surveillance, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags for all the yatris and regular checking of vehicles for IEDs including sticky bombs.
Adequate central paramilitary personnel would be deployed along the yatra route.
Top officials in the security establishment said that the vulnerable areas were being identified and no tents would be allowed to come up in these areas.
“Aerial surveys will be conducted to detect any formation of glacial lakes and immediate steps taken to prevent breaches,” they said. “A better communication system on the yatra route and deployment of machines to immediately open the route in the event of a landslide has been carried out. Adequate stocks of oxygen cylinders, additional teams of doctors, ambulances and helicopters have been kept stand by for the yatris.”
In the backdrop of last year’s flash floods, special measures have been taken to guard against possible disasters like the cloudburst that killed 16 yatris last year.
The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has been entrusted with preparing the tracks for the yatra, including fixing the weak or damaged railings and bridges.
