CRPF to look after hinterland security along with JKP
*MoD, MHA giving final touch to new proposal
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Aug 25: The Central Government is likely to shift the Rashtriya Rifles from hinterland of Jammu and Kashmir and deploy its troops along the Line of Control (LoC) to strengthen Anti-Infiltration Grid in Rajouri and Poonch districts of the Jammu region and Baramulla and Kupwara in the Kashmir valley.
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The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), whose additional battalions are being deployed in Jammu and Kashmir, will replace the Rashtriya Rifles in villages and hinterland of the Union Territory, once the proposal is matured.
Deployment of CRPF in hinterland and moving Rashtriya Rifles to LoC is part of restructuring security forces in Jammu and Kashmir, sources told the Excelsior.
They said the officials of Ministry of Defence (MoD) and Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) are holding regular meetings on the issue to formalize the plan as need has been felt to further strengthen anti-infiltration measures on the LoC to ensure that the terrorists don’t manage to sneak into Jammu and Kashmir to carry out subversive activities.
“Deployment of additional troops of Rashtriya Rifles along the LoC will help strengthen anti-infiltration measures,’’ they said.
There have been reports that Pakistan army and militant commanders have been trying to push trained terrorists into Jammu and Kashmir. A number of intrusion bids have been foiled by the troops on the LoC.
Asserting that new blueprint was being worked out for past some time now, sources said it is now in the process of implementation because of improvement in security-related situation with terrorism at its lowest ebb.
Recently, the Centre ordered the deployment of three CRPF battalions in the Jammu region to strengthen the counter-terrorist security grid. These units will take over from RR units deployed in Udhampur and Kathua districts, with each battalion having an operational strength of about 800 personnel. They will be engaged in anti-terror operations, wherever required, along with Jammu and Kashmir Police (JKP).
The Centre plans to hand over to the paramilitary force more such areas, including in Kashmir, after complete CRPF deployment in Udhampur and Kathua.
The Rashtriya Rifles, a special counter-insurgency force comprising personnel from the Indian Army, was established in nineties and deployed in Jammu and Kashmir when the terrorism was at its peak.
The three CRPF battalions earmarked for the task have been augmented with those officials and jawans who have undertaken counter-terrorist and counter-insurgency operations with “distinction”. These units are also being provided with modern weapons, communication tools and armoured vehicles, the sources said.
The units will utilize the infrastructure and assets of the existing Army units, they said.
The CRPF fully replaced the BSF in counter-insurgency operations in Jammu & Kashmir around 2005. BSF was deputed for internal security duties in J&K, particularly in the 1990s, after the insurgency began. This transition, recommended by a Group of Ministers after the 1999 Kargil war, aimed to allow the BSF to focus on its primary role of guarding the country’s borders while the CRPF specialized in internal security duties.
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