Himachal CM Jai Ram Thakur instructs authorities to stay alert after Shimla terror threat

After inputs about the planned bomb blasts in Shimla were received by the Himachal Pradesh police, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Saturday said that instructions to stay alert have been shared with authorities at all places where people are gathering for New Year celebrations.

"We have shared the information (inputs about the planned blasts at Ridge Ground, Shimla) and instructions to stay alert with authorities at all places where people are gathering for New year celebrations," said CM Thakur while speaking to the media."The government is still alert about any possible incident by anti-social elements trying to disturb the peace in the state," Chief Minister Thakur added. 

Terror threat in Shimla 

Police had suddenly stopped the ongoing New Year celebrations at Shimla's Ridge Maidan on Friday evening. This step was taken as a precautionary measure against a terror threat from Pakistan based groups of an explosion during the celebrations at the Ridge Ground. The person who was entrusted with the responsibility of planting the bomb is said to be of Kashmiri origin.

The police hurriedly vacated Ridge Maidan and alerted the entire state. However, police did not reveal the terror threat initially and while instructing people to clear the area told them that it was due to the rising Omicorn threat. 

When thousands of tourists had reached Ridge Maidan and Mall Road on Friday evening, Shimla Police suddenly made an announcement to vacate the place. The police attributed the reason for this to the new variant of COVID-19, Omicron. At the same time, the bomb disposal squad of the police was called to the spot. The checking was conducted on Ridge Maidan and Mall Road. An investigation has been launched.

"In view of these inputs, Himachal Pradesh police has been directed to keep watch over activities of anti-nation or anti-social elements and also to strengthen the checking in their perspective jurisdictions,"  an official note of the Shimla Superintendent of Police (SP) office read. 

The police were further directed to take preventive and precautionary measures to maintain law and order and carry out frequent checking of hotels, gurudwaras, mosques, temples, railway stations, bus stands, hospitals, etc.

(With agency inputs)