DHARAMSALA: The Kangra Police have increased vigil on the border with Punjab in view of the intelligence reports of likelihood of infiltration or bomb strikes by Rashmin militants in the border Areas of Himachal Pradesh.

 A team of explosive detectives has been sent to Nurpur for thorough checking of all vehicles entering into Himachal Pradesh from Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir, according to Superintendent of Police, L.D. Bhandari.

The border check post at Kandwal has been strengthened and all incoming vehicles were being thoroughly screened, Bhandari Said, The vigil has been necessitated as thousands of tourists and devotees come to Kangra district to visit famous shrines of Ghamunda, Jawalamukhi and Brijeshwan temple.

Meanwhile, the Kangra police has launched a massive campaign against bootleggers who mostly hail from Sansi and Bangala tribes in Nurpur Sub-division.

The police in a massive said last month had destroyed about 340 liters of illicit liquor in village Channi where all the 125 households of Sansi tribe are engaged in producing liquor. Eighteen per Sons were arrested, 400 quintles of “lahan” and 102 drums of liquor were also destroyed in the raid, Bhandan said, adding that the police was now concentrating on destroying the produce by bootleggers, instead of registering too many cases.

 He said’ team of 75 armed policemen headed by a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) has been stationed at village Channi to check bootlegging in the region.

Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh had expressed concern over bootlegging in the district and asked the police to take strict action against the bootleggers, at a recent convention of DCs and SSPs held recently at Shimla, Bhandari said the conviction rate in various cases in the district has almost tripled over the last year due to sustained efforts of the police. He said there were only 74 convictions last year under various cases, while this year a total of 179 convictions had been achieved by the police so far.

 Another feature of the crime graph in the district has been that for the first time since 1985, there has not been a single registration Of a Case under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (TADA) Act. The Kangra police have been registering one or two cases annually since 1985 under the TADA. The SP attributed this to an improvement in law and order situation in Punjab.

Article extracted from this publication >> August 12, 1994