Rehan Qayoom Mir
Srinagar, May 06 : Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday said that after the Pahalgam terror attack—which left 26 people mostly tourists dead—people of Kashmir for the first time came on streets to show their anger.
Talking to reporters here the Chief Minister, according to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) said, “What happened in Kulgam shouldn’t have happened, but not only Kulgam, the news of arrests, which is coming from different places in Kashmir—for the first time, the people of Jammu & Kashmir, especially Kashmir, came on the street against the attack and have shown their anger. This message shouldn’t be conveyed to them that they all are being punished.”
On the SDRF personnel conducting a mock drill in Dal Lake, the Chief Minister said, “During the past few days, two boats have capsized in Dal Lake and we have asked the SDRF to deploy their teams to prevent tragedies and loss of life.”
Asked whether SDRF personnel have been deployed in Dal Lake after the MHA issued instructions to make civil defence preparations, Omar quipped, saying, “I don’t work in MHA. I work in J&K government.”
Pertinently, the Ministry of Home Ministry had on Monday directed the Chief Secretaries of all the States and Union Territories to strengthen civil defence preparedness in vulnerable areas and districts.
A letter written by the Additional Director General (ADG) Civil Defence, which is in possession of KNO reads: “The issue of strengthening of civil defence set up and maintaining optimum civil defence preparedness in the categorized CD towns/districts at States/UTs has been emphasized by the Prime Minister and the Union Home Minister during their address at the ‘Chintan Shivir’, held at Surajkund, Haryana on 27 & 28 Oct 2022.”—(KNO)
