No decision on ceasefire but more sops for Valley
KASHMIR Rajnath announces schemes for border villages
SRINAGAR: Union home minister Rajnath Singh did not say whether the government would continue its suspension of security operations in Kashmir beyond Ramzan, but announced several efforts to reach out to the people of the region during the last day of his two-day tour on Friday.
The suspension, or the unilateral cessation of operations, was put in place in May for the month of Ramzan which ends next week.
The state’s top officials, including chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, have told Singh that the move has succeeded in bringing down violence in civilian areas, according to a functionary of the Peoples Democratic Party who was aware of the deliberations between the home minister and state officials. This person asked not to be identified because the discus- sions were classified. The PDP rules the state in alliance with the BJP.
“We will sit and after reviewing the situation, a decision about the ceasefire will be taken,” Singh said while visiting frontier villages in Kupwara.
The minister announced new plans to set up two border battalions and five battalions of the Indian Reserve Police, with 60% of the posts reserved for people who live in border areas.
Such regions will also be given several bullet-proof ambulances and the government will build more than 14,000 bunkers for people to take shelter in during episodes of violence between India and Pakistan.