Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said Pakistan has “gone out of its way” to target civilian population in the Union Territory following India’s missile strikes targeting terror infrastructure in the neighbouring country.
“As reports are coming, Pakistan has gone out of its way to target the civilian population. So I have taken stock of the situation and we are dealing with the situation as it develops,” Omar said after chairing a review meeting here.
The CM said India had gone out of its way to ensure that no military and civilian targets were hit in the strikes.
“After the inhumane and barbaric murder of 26 innocent civilians in Pahalgam, it was expected that India would use its right to respond in an appropriate and proportionate way. I think the Government of India and Indian defence forces have gone out of the way to ensure no military and civilian targets were hit in Pakistan. They have only hit terror bases,” he added.
Earlier, Omar Omar chaired an emergency meeting with Deputy Commissioners of all border districts through video conferencing to assess the situation in the wake of intense cross border shelling in these districts.
The situation and preparedness to deal with exigencies was reviewed in view of the current developments and escalating tension particularly along the LOC and districts close to the international border.
The meeting was attended by Advisor to the Chief Minister Nasir Aslam Wani, Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo, Additional Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister Dheeraj Gupta, Divisional Commissioners of Kashmir and Jammu, Commissioner Secretary Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs, Secretary Health & Medical Education and Deputy Commissioners of Jammu, Poonch, Rajouri, Kathua, Samba, Baramulla, Kupwara and Bandipora districts.
During the meeting, the Chief Minister gave directions to immediately release Contingency Funds of Rs 5 crore to each border district and Rs 2 crore each to other districts so that Deputy Commissioners are equipped to deal with the exigencies arising and requiring availability of adequate resources. CM directed that frontier districts be accorded special priority in the disbursement of these funds.
Underscoring the paramount importance of safeguarding civilian lives, CM called for strengthening infrastructure with regard to providing shelters and bunkers for public in border areas, keeping evacuation plans ready, ensuring sufficient stock of food supplies.
In respect of medical assistance, Omar asked Health Department to maintain sufficient stock of essential medical supplies, ensuring availability of doctors, paramedics and keeping blood supply ready in case of any depletionin hospitals, especially in vulnerable areas. He also directed to move Ambulances to the border districts witnessing cross border shelling so that in case of any casualty, the injured are rushed to the hospitals.
The CM expressed grief on loss of lives and injuries to several civilians living along the LOC and asked Deputy Commissioners to provide all assistance to the affected families. He gave directions to the administration to immediately fill up vacant posts of Tehsildars and other officers in the districts so that Government machinery is fully functional and responds to the situation swiftly.
The officers briefed the Chief Minister on the preparedness and readiness of their respective districts, assuring that they are ready with all emergency operations and that all supplies have been stocked. Deputy Commissioners informed the CM that they are continuously monitoring the situation and would keep the administration informed about any requirements to deal with the situation.
CM also instructed all officers to actively counter misinformation and rumour-mongering, urging the public to rely solely on verified official sources of information in these sensitive times.