Alert issued in HP districts near border

Shimla, June 16: The Himachal Pradesh police has issued an alert in Lahaul-Spiti and Kinnaur districts, which border China, in view of the violent clash between Indian and Chinese troops in eastern Ladakh’s Galwan Valley, an official said on Tuesday.

An Indian Army officer and two soldiers were killed during the incident on Monday.

State police spokesperson Khushal Sharma said an alert and an advisory have been issued to Kinnaur and Lahaul-Spiti districts to take all precautionary measures to ensure security of local population and also to collect intelligence so as to plan the future course of action.

All state intelligence units have also been alerted in this regard, he added.

Meanwhile, a special train that was to carry 1,600 migrant workers on their way to Leh from Dumka in Jharkhand for construction work of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) was cancelled on Tuesday, following tensions between India and China in the region, officials said.

This was the second such train after a special train on June 13 carried a similar number of workers on their way to Leh, following an agreement between the Jharkhand government and the BRO, they said.

The train was cancelled keeping in view the safety of workers, Dumka Deputy Commissioner Rajeshwari B said.

The train was scheduled to leave Dumka around 2 pm and take the migrant workers till Jammu, from where the BRO would have arranged transport for them, officials said.

One train has already gone and the second has been held up, following the tense situation.

“(We are) establishing contact with the BRO officials and then further action will be taken,” chief minister Hemant Soren told reporters.

Saluting the Army officer and two soldiers, he said the brave soldiers did not budge an inch.