Shimla: Chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal asked the central government to bare the entire additional security related expenditure which the state had to bear for guarding porous inter-state borders.
Speaking at the chief ministers conference in Delhi, Dhumal said the state was spending around Rs 12 crore annually on additional security along the 1100 kilometers of interstate border with Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana and Uttrakhand. The state also shared a 200 kilometer international border with China, he added.
The central government is only contributing Rs 4 crore towards the additional security needed to man the borders, he said.
Providing a security cover to the Tibetan government in exile as well as the Karmapa Lama was also a responsibility of the state, said Dhumal. The chief minister demanded that all Tibetan refugees and Nepalese be issued photo-identity cards for meeting security requirements.
He said that presently there were 23 thousand Tibetan refugees and another 25 thousand Nepalese living in the state.
Speaking about the news instated National Investigation Agency Act and changes brought about in the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, Dhumal said that certain sections of NIA Act infringe upon powers of state governments and are against the spirit of federal structure.
There was a need to augment intelligence gathering abilities by increasing manpower and training personnel with latest tools, he said. The two new Indian Reserve Battalions which have been raised in the state would be provided commando training and equipped with latest weapons, he added.
As Editor, Ravinder Makhaik leads the team of media professionals at Hill Post.
In a career spanning over two decades through all formats of journalism in Electronic, Print and Online Media, he brings with him enough experience to steer this platform. He lives in Shimla.
