Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir has put in place extensive plans to mobilise 7,000 government employees for Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi’s upcoming public rally at Srinagar’s Bakshi Stadium on March 7.
Quoting reliable sources, The Hindu reported that 13 departments, including Education, National Rural Livelihood Mission, Agriculture, Rural Development Department, Handicrafts, Srinagar Municipal Corporation, Integrated Child Development Services, Directorate of Youth Services & Sports, Nehru Yuva Kendra, J&K Khadi and Village Industries Board, Social Welfare, and Jal Shakti, have been instructed to ensure the participation of their employees in the event.
The Food Safety department has received specific instructions to ensure the presence of representatives from 62 bakery shops located throughout the city.
The report quoting an official circular said, “All Departmental/Sectoral Nodal Officers shall strictly ensure that vehicles allotted to their respective sectors shall only be utilised at respective identified pickup locations, keeping in view of the security measures. No alteration shall be entertained in the list of participants, Vehicle Nodal Persons, allotted vehicles etc.”
Based on a list obtained by The Hindu, it is estimated that around 7,000 employees from the 13 departments will be attending the Modi’s rally.
To ensure the security of the event, an extensive security clearance initiative has been launched to conduct background checks on the government employees who will be present at the rally.
In the Valley, armed forces are already on alert. The deployment of armed forces personnel has been increased around the renovated Bakshi Stadium with barricades set up for checking the vehicles passing through the venue of Modi’s rally.
Jammu and Kashmir police and CRPF personnel are conducting random checking of vehicles at dozens of places in the city and elsewhere, as per PTI report.
Special check points have been set up at various places in the city, including the entry and exit points as a precautionary measure, they said.
The armed forces have increased patrolling around the venue of the rally. This will be Modi’s first visit to the Kashmir valley after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.
Modi had visited Jammu last month to inaugurate several development projects. He also addressed a public rally in the region.
