DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack, on Thursday gave his nod for recruiting 5,500 home guards to strengthen the second line of defence at the International Border. A decision to this effect was taken in a meeting chaired by the chief minister here, an official statement said.

During the meeting, Mann said 5,500 jawans in the border wing of the Punjab Home Guards will be deployed in the seven border districts of the state to enhance security cover. In Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam, 26 people were killed on Tuesday afternoon when terrorists alighted from nearby forests at a meadow frequented by tourists and opened fire.

In the wake of the terror attack, Mann said, the proposal to set up a second line of defence behind the Border Security Force (BSF) will help to catch anyone that escapes the BSF's net at the International Border. An effective second line of defence will "check nefarious designs of forces inimical to the state", he said. Considering the enormity of the task, the state government will certainly need the Centre's assistance, for which he will soon meet the Union home minister, Mann said.

Mann said Punjab already has the manpower, courage and competence for the job and for additional resources, the Government of India (GoI) will be approached.

Punjab Police has the willingness, experience and professional competence to answer the need for such an impregnable fortress-wall to block any kind of invasion, open or disguised, he said. The Punjab chief minister added that apart from the 5,500 additional home guards, over 400 jawans will be recruited across the state. The jawans will be deployed in Sadak Surakhya Force (SSF) and State Disaster Relief Force (SDRF), he said.

(editor@dailyworld.in)