Amar Singh club also to be vacated within few days: IG, CRPF
Srinagar, Apr 27: After more than two decades, paramilitary CRPF forces finally vacated the Hotel Centaur Lakeview in Srinagar. The move has been taken on the directions of Chief Minister Mufti Mohmad Syeed.
Talking to THE KASHMIR SCENARIO Inspector General of CRPF K. S Bandari said that they have vacated the Hotel Centaur Lakeview after having been allotted the alternate accommodation by the state government. “We have vacated the hotel and more hotels including the Amar Singh Club would be vacated within shortest possible time. “
He said that CRPF has no hindrance to vacate the hotels in Srinagar city. “We are waiting for Jammu and Kashmir government to arrange alternate accommodation for the forces,” the IG added.
It is to mention here that Chief Minister, Mufti Muhammad Sayeed had assured tourism players to make evacuation of all hotels possible in Srinagar city that have been currently occupied by security forces.
Meanwhile Reliable sources told TKS that that on the request of the state government Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has directed CRPF to vacate the hotels and guest houses as soon as possible.
“ Following heavy influx of tourists to the Valley in June this year the state government has requested the MHA to instruct the paramilitary CRPF to vacate all the hotels it had occupied on the Boulevard Road here,” one of the government official told TKS. He said that the tourism is picking up and move is aimed only to ease out the problems of accommodation to tourists.
He said that providing of alternate accommodation to CRPF is one of the priorities. “It is one of the priorities and we are actively looking for alternate accommodation for force. “Since the eruption of militancy in the Valley anti-insurgency forces were deployed in haphazard manner and we are trying to give a shape to it,” he added.
It is to mention here that National conference government had removed 45 bunkers of CRPF from different parts of Srinagar. The removal of bunkers in Srinagar was part of the 8-point Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) announced by the Centre in September 2010, after the massive unrest broke out in Kashmir. The CBMs were meant to provide relief and instill a sense of security and confidence in the people of the state.