By IANS,
Srinagar : Indian Army Chief General Deepak Kapoor reviewed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir Tuesday, a day after the annual Amarnath pilgrimage began despite inclement weather.
“Kapoor reviewed the over all security situation in Jammu and Kashmir and the arrangements for smooth conduct of the Amarnath Yatra (pilgrimage),” said a defence ministry official.
The nearly two-month long pilgrimage, which in the past has come under militant attacks many times, is a major security challenge in the state.
During his two-day visit to the state, Kapoor discussed the situation with the senior army commanders in the state. He arrived here Monday and also interacted with officers and troops engaged in counter terrorism operations in Jammu and Kashmir.
Kapoor was briefed about the measures being taken by the army in Kashmir to fight militants and thwart summer incursion bids from across the border with Pakistan.
The army chief, who was accompanied by his wife Kirti Kapoor, also met Jammu and Kashmir Governor N.N. Vohra.
Kapoor’s tour comes two days after Home Minister P. Chidambaram visited the state in the backdrop of heightened tension over the rape and murder of two women in a south Kashmir village allegedly involving security forces.
Chidambaram had emphasized that the Jammu and Kashmir police would be given “primary responsibility” to maintain law and order in the state with central paramilitary acting only in an auxiliary capacity.