Over 8,600 bunkers constructed along LoC, international border in Jammu

Over 8,600 community and individual bunkers have been constructed along the Line of Control and the International Border in five districts of the Jammu region, an official spokesperson said on Saturday.

The information was given at a meeting, chaired by Divisional Commissioner (DC) of Jammu, Sanjeev Verma, to review the progress of construction of bunkers in Samba, Kathua, Jammu, Poonch and Rajouri districts, he said.

According to the spokesperson, the highest number of 4,431 bunkers has been constructed along the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch, followed by 1,238 in Rajouri.

He said 1,063 bunkers have been constructed along the International Border (IB) in Samba, 1,039 in Kathua and 869 in Jammu.

In December 2017, the Centre had sanctioned construction of 14,460 bunkers at a cost of Rs 415.73 crore for residents of border areas facing Pakistani shelling along the LoC and the IB in Jammu division.

While 7,298 bunkers were sanctioned for the twin districts of Rajouri and Poonch along the LoC, 7,162 were sanctioned for residents of areas along the IB in Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts.

The spokesperson said the DC directed the deputy commissioners of the border districts to expedite the construction of the remaining bunkers.

He also directed the deputy commissioners to regularly monitor the construction work and set weekly and monthly targets for its completion at the earliest.