Union Home Min Amit Shah reaches Jammu; inaugurates new campus of IIT

Amid tight security, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday arrived here and inaugurated the new campus of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Jammu, officials said.

Shah, accompanied by Union ministers Jitendra Singh and Dharmendra Pradhan and Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, reached Jammu airport from Srinagar and started his engagements with the inauguration of the new campus of the IIT-Jammu, they said.

Shah is on a three-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir, his first after the Centre revoked the erstwhile state's special status and bifurcated it into union territories on August 5, 2019.

They officials said the new campus of IIT-Jammu, built at a cost of Rs 210 crore, has all the facilities like hostel, gymnasium, indoor games, along with higher education for the students.

After inaugurating the new campus of the IIT-Jammu, Shah reached the Bhagwati Nagar area to address a public rally.

Heavy rains lashed Jammu on Saturday, casting a shadow on the scheduled public meeting of the Union home minister. However, with improvement in the weather, the local unit of the BJP and the administration worked overnight to ensure the success of the rally.

Policemen and paramilitary personnel were deployed in strength in and around the venue.

Shah arrived at the rally amid thunderous applause and sloganeering by the participants who had reached the venue in large numbers to hear the home minister.

An official of the IIT-Jammu said, "It is a state of the art research centre to cater to students of various disciplines. It is meant for research and development.".