THE decision to shut down 49 tourist spots and to put in place extra layers of security and checks on the rest follows an audit, of close to 87 places across the valley, conducted by the security forces after the Pahalgam terror attack, The Indian Express has learnt.
Sources said based on this audit, the Army will consider re-deploying and dominating several tourist spots across the Valley that will remain accessible to tourists.
Simultaneously, other paramilitary forces and the & Kashmir police have also been deployed around these spots even as checkpoints have been established to prevent the movement of tourists to locations that will remain closed.
Sources told that the following were the key variables that were factored in while drawing up a list of vulnerable spots: availability of forces for security duties; ease of approach to these locations by terrorists and their ability to escape or hide in the surrounding areas; tourist footfall; how quickly and effectively the security forces can react should an incident take place.
“Additionally, narrow roads and small bridges en route to some tourist places make them more vulnerable as chaos and crowding can take place in the event of an incident,” a source said.
Popular tourist spots such as Gulmarg, Sonmarg, the Mughal Gardens and the boulevard along the Dal Lake in Srinagar have been kept open, among others.
Sources said the strength of paramilitary and police personnel will be beefed up for “static duties,” which include deployment at checkposts. They will also carry out patrolling and operations in the vicinity. The Army and Rashtriya Rifles will consider re-deploying a few companies in the hinterland, towards providing “prophylactic security” (meant to deter an incident), an official said.
Additionally, temporary operating bases and area domination patrols would be used to deny the terrorists any access to sensitive tourist spots.
Since the Pahalgam massacre, multiple cordon-and-search operations and intense patrolling to trace terrorists have been carried out across the Valley.
Meanwhile, there have been many ceasefire violations in the last few days, including one Monday night when, according to the Army, the Pak Army resorted to unprovoked small-arms firing across the LoC in areas opposite Kupwara and Baramulla in the Valley and the Akhnoor sector in Jammu.
