SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir secretariat reopened in Srinagar on May 9 amidst tight security arrangements in view of a call for a protest strike in the Kashmir valley. The administration had a right of relief as the opening day of the civil secretariat in Srinagar passed off peacefully on Monday. The government had reports that militants had planned to target the secretariat and had made tight security arrangements around the seven-storey buildings to meet any untoward incident.

The secretariat opened at 10:00a.m. with senior functionaries of the government including the advisors to the Governor and the Chief Secretary attending their normal duties on the opening day of the secretariat.

Although attendance in the secretariat was not upto the mark, the officials expressed satisfaction over the local employees reporting for duty. The secretariat and other offices were closed in Jammu on April 29, following the annual “durbar move,” under which the secretariat functions for six months each in Jammu and Srinagar.

Article extracted from this publication >> May 13, 1994