India is deploying additional 580 companies of Central Armed Police Forces across Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir in the name of peaceful conduct of the Amarnath Yatra, yet observers view it as part of the Modi-led Indian regime’s sinister plan amid escalating tension with Pakistan.
The forces will include personnel from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).
This year marks one of the highest levels of deployment in the name of annual pilgrimage in the history. Out of the total 580 companies, approximately 400 will be concentrated along the Kashmir Valley’s Pahalgam and Baltal routes.
The rest of companies would be deployed in Jammu division. The CRPF will play a lead role in route protection, camp security and crowd management.
The BSF and ITBP, with their experience in high-altitude operations, will secure mountain tracks and vulnerable patches along the Yatra route while as SSB units are expected to assist with internal security at base camps and checkpoints. The security plan for the Yatra is multilayered.
Drones, CCTV cameras, night-vision equipment, and bomb-detection squads will be extensively used. Specialized anti-sabotage teams and quick reaction teams (QRTs) are being placed along the high-risk segments. “The induction of forces will begin on Monday (today) and is scheduled to be completed by June 22, ahead of the start of the Yatra on June 29,”said a senior police official. Special training and acclimatization drills have been scheduled for troops posted in high-altitude zones.