The Himachal Police has decided to have a professionally trained Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) to prevent any attempt by militant outfits to strike in the peaceful hill state.
Himachal proposes to have an ATS which will be trained by the special wing of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), Delhi, which has expertise in counter-terrorism operations. To begin with, 20 Himachal Police personnel will be trained by the NIA to specialise in dealing with counter-terrorism operations.
“We have approached the NIA to train 20 personnel so that our force has specially trained men in this filed,” said Director General of Police B Kamal Kumar. He said the ATS would be stationed in a central location in the state so that they were able to reach any corner of the state in a short span.
Himachal has two Special Action Groups (SAG) in Shimla and Dharamsala, having 50 men each who have been trained for special operations. However, they are not trained for counter-terrorism operations. “The Anti-Terrorist Squad will be trained to respond to terror threats, control and coordinate in all counter-terrorism measures and investigate terrorism-related activities,” the DGP said.
The Armed Police and Training (APT) wing of the police has been asked to select 20 personnel from various ranks below the age of 35 years who are physically fit.
They will undergo the rigorous training to counter terrorism-related activities and train others in similar operations.
Even though Himachal continues to remain peaceful with no major terrorist activities except in parts of Chamba district that share boundary with Jammu and Kashmir, recent intelligence inputs have indicated that some Buddhist and Tibetan monasteries in Dharamsala and two tribal districts of Kinnaur and Lahaul Spiti could be targeted.
The security of Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama is another concern. Following the bomb blasts in Bodh Gaya, security has been tightened in the important monasteries like the one adjacent to Dalai Lama’s residence in McLeodganj, Tabo and Kei monasteries in Lahaul Spiti and the Gyuto Tantrik monastery, where the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorjee, stays after his flight from Tibet.
Besides this, Himachal has some major hydro-power projects which could also be targeted by terrorists. An Anti-Terrorist Squad will help guard such sensitive places and the monasteries against potential terrorist threat.
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