Punjab Police put in place robust multi-agency security plan for Shri Amarnath Yatra-2025

United News of India

13 hours ago

Chandigarh, June 25 (UNI) To ensure the safe and smooth conduct of the Shri Amarnath Yatra-2025, Punjab Police have implemented a comprehensive, multi-layered, and inter-agency security and coordination plan.
This includes advanced surveillance, strategic deployment of forces, and round-the-clock coordination for the safety of pilgrims, said Special Director General of Police (Special DGP) Law and Order Arpit Shukla today.
The sacred Shri Amarnath Yatra 2025 is scheduled to commence on July 3, 2025, and will continue till August 9, 2025. This annual pilgrimage draws lakhs of devotees from across India, many of whom travel through Punjab, particularly Pathankot district, on their way to the holy cave shrine in Jammu & Kashmir.
Special DGP Arpit Shukla chaired a high-level security and coordination meeting involving the Police, Army, Civil Administration, and other security agencies to review and strengthen the arrangements for the pilgrimage.
The meeting, held in Pathankot, focused on strategic preparations for the Yatra, covering aspects such as police deployment, security measures, traffic regulation, and disaster management.
Special DGP Shukla emphasised the need for heightened vigilance, given Pathankot's strategic location, sharing 26.385 km of the international border with Pakistan and housing critical defence installations. He said the level of security has been further escalated, with Commandant-rank officers appointed in charge of all roads leading to Jammu & Kashmir.
He informed that the Yatra route has been divided into well-defined security sectors, each under the supervision of a Commandant-rank officer, to ensure 24x7 ground-level oversight and rapid response in case of any exigency.
A 24x7 Command and Control Centre has been established at Nakka Madhopur, supervised by a Gazetted Officer, to monitor vehicle and pilgrim movements using advanced surveillance systems.
Daily anti-sabotage and security checks are being conducted at sensitive locations, including railway stations, bus stands, langar (community kitchen) sites, religious places, and across the entire Yatra route to detect and deter potential threats. These measures are being implemented under the direct supervision of Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Pathankot, Daljinder Singh Dhillon.
The Special DGP directed concerned officers to ensure seamless coordination among all stakeholders, including the Indian Army, Border Security Force (BSF), Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), Jammu & Kashmir Police, Himachal Pradesh Police, and other central agencies.
He further highlighted that additional technical resources such as mobile surveillance units, high-resolution CCTV systems, drone-based aerial surveillance, GPS-enabled patrolling, and real-time reporting mechanisms are actively being employed to monitor suspicious activities.
Meanwhile, police have sensitised and trained owners and staff of petrol pumps, dhabas, hotels, guest houses, and other roadside establishments along the route to report any unusual activity, suspicious objects, or unidentified persons to the nearest police station without delay.
Prominent officers present at the meeting included DIG Border Range Satinder Singh, AIG Sukhminder Singh Mann, Deputy Commissioner Pathankot Aditya Uppal, Deputy Commissioner Hoshiarpur Ashika Jain, Deputy Commissioner Kathua Dr Rakesh Minhas, SSP Pathankot Daljinder Singh Dhillon, SSP Hoshiarpur Sandeep Kumar Malik, along with senior officers from the Indian Army, Indian Air Force, central agencies, and civil and police officials from the adjoining states of Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh.
UNI XC RN