RFID tags on vehicles, barcode slips for pilgrims to guarantee a safe Amarnath Yatra

Representational Image

After receiving intel on possibilities of a terror attack during the Amarnath Yatra that starts from July 1, the government, on Wednesday, decided to heighten security arrangement for the pilgrims.

The Amarnath Yatra is an annual affair that sees many Hindu devotees march up to a holy cave shrine dedicated to Lord Shiva.

The Ministry of Home Affairs had received intel on terror groups planning to carry out fidayeen (suicide bombing) attacks on the pilgrims. They were also told that more than 300 terrorists are active in Kashmir at the moment, as per a report in DNA. That’s when the MHA decided to scale up the security cover.

RR Bhatnagar, Director General (DG), CRPF, said that the security agencies plan to leverage technology to curb chances of any such attack. The pilgrims would be given barcode-enabled authority slips, which would help in keeping a track of their movements. Additionally, only registered pilgrims who have been issued the barcoded slips would be allowed to use official vehicles designated to take the yatris to the camps arranged for their stay during the Amarnath Yatra.

To ensure proper implementation, the Amarnath Cave Shrine Board along with the security agencies have drawn up a “detailed plan” that would make sure that all the pilgrims who are registering get the barcoded slips. These slips would contain vital details such as the pilgrims’ photographs and contact numbers.

Apart from this, enhanced and upgraded radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags will be fitted to the official vehicles that will take pilgrims and civilians to the cave shrine and back.

The Centre will also deploy close to 40,000 paramilitary and state police personnel in a bid to tighten the security cover through the 46-day yatra on both the routes — the longer, traditional Pahalgam route in Anantnag district and the shorter, new Baltal route in Ganderbal district.

Also, keeping in mind the February 14 Pulwama terror attack, the Central Reserve Police Force will also be deploying several counter-IED teams that will keep a close watch and sanitise roads and vehicles to detect IEDs.