Yatra route ‘No Fly Zone’, no helicopter services this year
Srinagar, Jun 18: Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan on Tuesday directed the security agencies to maintain high level of alertness to keep inimical elements at bay as he reviewed the security arrangements for the upcoming Shri Amarnath Ji yatra.
Mohan, who arrived here, earlier in the day, also stressed for ensuring coordination between various sister agencies for smooth passage of the annual yatra.
Intelligence Bureau Director Tapan Kumar Deka was also present in the meeting held at the Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC) in Srinagar, which was attended by top officers of Army, BSF, CRPF, police and other security agencies, the officials said.
The meeting also reviewed the prevailing security situation in Jammu and Kashmir.
The 38-day-long yatra is scheduled to start on July 3 from the twin routes — the traditional 48-kilometre Pahalgam route in Anantnag district and the 14-kilometre shorter but steeper Baltal route in Ganderbal district.
The first batch of pilgrims will leave for Kashmir from Bhagwati Nagar camp on July 2 and reach the twin base camps at Nuwan on Pahalgam route and Baltal on Sonamarg route same evening.
During the meeting, the Union home secretary was briefed about various security measures — including use of facial recognition system, CCTV surveillance and use of radio frequency identification (RFID) tags for the pilgrims — taken to ensure peaceful and incident-free pilgrimage, the officials said.
The meeting was also informed about declaration of the entire Amarnath yatra route a no fly zone, which bars operating any UAVs, drones or balloons over the twin routes from July 1 to August 10.
It may be mentioned that the J&K administration has declared the entire Amarnath Yatra route a ‘no flying zone’ for the period of pilgrimage this year.
The Union Territory’s Home department, which is under direct control of Lieutenant Governor, has declared all the routes of Amarnath Yatra as ‘no flying zone’ including both Pahalgam axis & Baltal axis.
The restriction applies to all types of aerial devices including UAVs, drones, and balloons.
After Home department’s directive, the authorities, in a separate notice, said that helicopter services wouldn’t be available for Yatris this year.
Citing the ‘no flying zone’ directive, the authorities said that pilgrims can reach the Shrine through foot or avail services of Ponies and Palkis. These restrictions would be applicable from July 01 to August 10. The move comes after the Ministry of Home Affairs, advised the J & K government to do so.
According to the Home Department’s order, these restrictions, however, shall not apply to cases of medical evacuation, disaster management, or surveillance operations conducted by security forces. A detailed Standard Operating Procedure (SOP for such exceptions will be issued subsequently, the order states.
In Tuesday’s meeting, Mohan was also informed about the multi-layer security blanket thrown all along the yatra route and various base camps en route the holy cave shrine, the officials said.
The Union home secretary directed the officers to maintain high level of alertness to keep inimical elements at bay and ensure coordination between various sister agencies for smooth passage of the yatra.
The participants included J&K Chief Secretary, Atal Duloo, Director General of J&K Police, Nalin Prabhat, Director General of National Investigation Agency (NIA), Director Generals of Border Security Force (BSF), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and Railway Protection Force (RPF), Additional Director Generals of Central Reserve Police Force and BSF. Joint Director Intelligence Bureau, Principal Home Secretary Kashmir, Northern Command GOC 15 Corps, GOCs pf 16 and 9 Corps, Additional Director General (ADG) CID, Special Director Intelligence Bureau, Chairman Railway Board, IG BSF Jammu, Joint Secretary Jammu and Kashmir Ladakh, ADG ITBP, Special DG Coordination, GM Northern Railway, IG NIA, IG CRPF, CEO Shrine Board, IGP Kashmir, IGP Jammu, Div Com Kashmir and Div Com Jammu.
The security around the annual Amarnath yatra has been heightened this year against the backdrop of the April 22 terror attack on tourists in Pahalgam that left 26 people dead.
The yatra has been targeted by terrorists several times in the past, with the last major attack coming in July 2017 when eight pilgrims were killed.
The annual Amarnath Yatra to the holy cave shrine situated 3888 metres above sea level will last for 38 days this year, beginning on July 3 and ending on August 9.
Pilgrims approach the cave shrine either through the longer traditional Pahalgam route or the shorter Baltal route. Those using the Pahalgam route in Anantnag district reach the cave shrine after three days, while those using the Baltal route in Ganderbal district return to the base camp the same day after having ‘darshan’ inside the cave shrine.
