Chaos as border sealed, over 1,200 being quarantinedOfficer Sahu deputed to look after arrangements at Lakhanpur

Tribune News Service

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Jammu/Kathua, March 25

The government on Wednesday appointed IAS officer Ajeet Kumar Sahu as the overall in charge to oversee the arrangements for the entry and exit of vehicles at Lakhanpur, the gateway to Jammu and Kashmir.

The decision to appoint Sahu came following chaos at Lakhanpur as the administration recently sealed J&K’s borders with neighbouring states and Ladakh.

Sahu, who is an IAS officer of the 2003 batch, is currently holding the charge of the Commissioner Secretary, Public Health Engineering and Irrigation and Flood Control Departments.

The Deputy Commissioner and the Senior Superintendent of Police of Kathua will work under Sahu’s supervision for the purpose.

The government has also deployed Arun Kumar Manhas, Project Director, Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan, as the Additional District Magistrate, Kathua (supplies management), in addition to his own duties.

According to officials, over 1,200 people, who have crossed Lakhanpur, are being quarantined in Kathua. The authorities have imposed strict restrictions on the entry of the people into J&K.

After the visit of Chief Secretary BVR Subrahmanyam and Inspector General of Police, Jammu, Mukesh Singh on March 23 to Kathua district, the district administration sealed the entry points of Kathua, including Lakhanpur and Atal Setu in Basholi.

“There are as many as 12 entry points in Kathua district, whose border touches that of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab. All points have been sealed with barbed wires and policemen have been deployed for round-the-clock surveillance,” official sources said.

Hundreds of people, including students, are stranded at Lakhanpur but the authorities have made it clear to them that they will be allowed to proceed further only after completing the quarantine period. The worst sufferers are those who had gone outside J&K for medical treatment or for performing religious rituals.