New Delhi, Srinagar:
A little over 24 hours after the Army was called in Kashmir to restore calm, Union Home Secretary GK Pillai has told NDTV that the Centre has assured all help to the J&K government. He also said the state government had been told to crack down on trouble-makers.
"The situation is under control in Srinagar and is being watched closely. More paramilitary forces are being sent there. The state government has been told to crack down on trouble-makers," he said.
The Home Secretary reviewed the law and order situation in Srinagar yesterday.
Meanwhile, speaking on the situation in Kashmir, Home Minister P Chidambaram today said, "Parents must ensure young boys stay indoors in Srinagar...we request the people to endorse curfew and stay indoors. The Army is ready and will be deployed if necessary."
(Read: Army presence to act as deterrent, says Chidambaram)At the crack of dawn on Wednesday, 17 columns of the Army were called on to the streets after a week of fragile peace was ripped open by a fresh spate of civilian deaths in clashes between protesters and security forces. The Army was deployed here after 15 years.(
Read & watch: J&K govt asks for Army to contain unrest: Sources)
A grim Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had worked the phone lines to Delhi and made it clear that it was time to use the last line of defence. And after some debate on the political impact of the move, it was eventually a thumbs up from New Delhi, where the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) met to discuss Kashmir.
Sources said the Army's mandate is only to be a deterrent against a worsening security situation. The Army, they said, would not be used for crowd control or in crowded inner-city neighbourhoods where it could come in direct confrontation with protesters.
Instead, the soldiers would keep an eye from the periphery, but with the aim of sending out a strong message. The priority right now was to restore law and order and bring down tempers. The Army took out several flag marches through the city.
But is this a move fraught with even more dangers and risks? Can it address the upsurge of anger on the ground? The Opposition says this should never have happened.
"Ironically, the Chief Minister himself has said that the unrest underlines the failure of a political process in the Valley and the urgent need to revive a domestic dialogue," said Mehbooba Mufti, president, People's Democratic Party.
Talking to NDTV on the issue Omar had said, "Absolutely, people don't see light at the end of tunnel, need to address it politically no matter who occupies the office here." (
Watch & Read: Omar interview)
Till last month New Delhi was measuring normalcy in the Valley in terms of the number of tourists flooding it, today, a tourist said he couldn't make it into the city without trouble. A wake-up call perhaps for the Centre.