Anti-insurgency steps DGP’s priority

Besides Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal and his counterpart from Jammu and Kashmir, Farooq Abdullah, all DGPs and some top ranking officials of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and Haryana are also participating in the meeting. They will devise steps for flushing out militants and also smashing their hideouts in Chamba area of Himachal Pradesh and adjoining Doda district. A meeting of police officers of two states was also held at Dalhousie four days back.

Mahajan told ENS, in an exclusive interview today, that the Centre had already sanctioned an additional battalion of CRPF for deployment in Himachal areas. The battalion will reach Chamba within the next few days from Jammu, where it was being replaced by some other para-military force.

The DGP informed that the first batch of the armed police jawans (approximately 150) will be sent for a three-month specialised training by ITBP and arrangements were also being made with SSP for imparting commando and anti-insurgency training to another batch. “In a phased manner, the entire four armed police battalions will be trained in anti-insurgency and other defence tactics to fight out militancy”, he proposes.

Reacting to the reports on ISI’s plan of striking in Himachal, the new DGP said: “So far, no fresh movements of the militants have come to notice in Chamba area. This was due to heavy deployment of the para-military forces on both sides of the border and successful plugging of the escape routes of the militants. For sometime, the para-military forces would continue to guard the borders. Every one will remain on alert even during the snow season so that militants do not get any advantage of the laxity on either side”.

Inspector General of Police (Jammu range) Kuldeep Khuda, when contacted in Jammu, said the police have set-up special pickets along the entire border area of Doda and Kathua and escape routes of the militants had been fully plugged. “There is a regular exchange of information on militant activities between Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal police and the recent meeting at Dalhousie had further helped in strengthening the information network. Khuda revealed that the plan to launch a joint combing operation to smash militants’ hideouts, recovery of the weapon — which militants were reportedly hiding in Chamba areas, and also to deal with harbourers had also been broadly worked.

The Himachal Pradesh government has set up village defence committees and appointed special police officers to assist the para-military forces and police. Their training by SSB is also over, Himachal DGP further revealed.