Srinagar: Security forces on Saturday launched an area domination exercise in the hilly and forest areas of Anantnag district ahead of the annual Amarnath Yatra, officials said.
The forces also intensified search operations in the dense forests and upper hilly reaches of Pahalgam in the south Kashmir district.
The mud houses, locally known as ‘dhoks’, of the Gujjar and Bakarwal community, were searched as part of the exercise.
The Amarnath Yatra begins on July 3 and will go on for close to two months.
The forces have strengthened security measures around the traditional route of the yatra, in view of last year’s terror attack in Pahalgam’s Baisaran meadows that left 25 tourists and a local pony operator dead.
A rogue drone sighting along the stretch from GDC Chowk and Khanabal-Sanal crossing was simulated to assess preparedness against emerging aerial threats, the officials said.
The police inspected fertiliser shops and chemical laboratories in educational institutions under the jurisdiction of Bijbehara Police Station.
