Omar chairs meeting to review Amarnath Yatra arrangements

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Wednesday chaired the unified headquarters meeting which took stock of the security situation in the state and the arrangements for the forthcoming annual Amarnath Yatra.

An official statement issued here said the chief minister received a briefing on the prevailing security and law and order situation in the state during the meeting, as well as "arrangements put in place to conduct the Shri Amarnath Yatra peacefully and securely".

The unified headquarters is the apex security grid in the state and was formed to coordinate security force action against the separatist guerrillas.

Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand, Minister of State for Home Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo, the army's northern command chief Lt. Gen. K.T. Parnaik, Principal Secretary Home Suresh Kumar, Director General of Police Ashok Prasad, the commanders of the army's 14, 15, 16, and 9 Corps, divisional commissioners, Kashmir and Jammu and other senior civil, police and intelligence officers also attended the meeting.

Lt. Gen. Parnaik had recently disclosed that intelligence intercepts with the army indicate this year's Amarnath Yatra is "on the radar of the militants".