Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Oct 10: The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has ordered fresh and high level security audit of all Airports, Railway Stations and Bus Stands in Jammu and Kashmir in view of spurt in militancy in the State with specific inputs that the militants could target crowded areas as a revenge of September 29 surgical strikes by the Indian Army inside Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK), which left several militants and Pakistan army personnel dead.
“A joint team of the MHA, Jammu and Kashmir Police, para-military forces and Intelligence agencies would conduct the security audit within a fortnight and submit comprehensive report to the Home Ministry, headed by BJP veteran Rajnath Singh, to take pre-emptive measures to ward off any possibility of terror strikes,” official sources told the Excelsior.
They said the security audit was ordered after certain specific inputs received from the Intelligence agencies. The audit would cover both Jammu and Srinagar Airports, major Railway Stations like Kathua, Samba, Jammu, Udhampur and Katra (apart from Pathankot in Punjab, bordering Jammu) and major Bus Stands in the State. Leh Airport has been excluded from the list as there was no specific input of any kind of threat to it by the militants.
“It would be a joint security audit. Multiple security agencies, both from Central and State Governments, would be involved in it. They would complete their task within a week and submit comprehensive report to the MHA, based on which security arrangements for these vital installations would be revised,” they added.
Clarifying that there was no specific input of any terror threat to these installations, sources pointed out that the Home Ministry’s step was aimed at ensuring fool-proof security of the people of the country, who land at Airports, Railway Stations and Bus Stands in Jammu and Kashmir daily.
After January 2 fidayeen attack at Pathankot, the Home and Defence Ministries had ordered joint security audit of all defence and security installations in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab by a high level team of the Home Ministry. After completion of the task, security was revised afresh for all security and defence installations in the State.
According to sources, since Airports, Railway Stations and Bus Stands in Jammu and Kashmir are provided security cover by different security agencies including para-military Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), Jammu and Kashmir Police etc, their security audit would be conducted by joint teams of the MHA, J&K and Intelligence agencies.
“It will be a multi-layered security cover for Airports, Railway Stations and Bus Stands with sophisticated infrastructure as large number of tourists, majority of which are pilgrim tourists, visit the State daily for darshan of holy cave shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi ji, Shiv Khori shrine and other pilgrim stations,” sources said, adding that process of the security audit was expected to be set into motion in the next couple of days going by the directives of the Home Ministry.
Sources said the multiple security agencies have been tasked to devise security audit in such a way that it was drafted for at least couple of years and not for few months. Accordingly, deployment at all Airports, Railway Stations and Bus Stands would be made based on the long term security requirements of the sensitive installations in view of repeated terror threats in the State and crowded areas being as major target of the Pakistan-backed militants.
Sources said the teams members assigned the task of security audit were experts in such field and had already devised strategy for various sensitive locations across the country including the State.
“As soon as the report of the security audit team is received, it would be studied by the Home Ministry officials, Incharge Jammu and Kashmir desk and steps taken for its implementation with the help of Jammu and Kashmir Government,” sources said.
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