Strange but true: A secretariat where live 2 battalions of CRPF

Strange but true: A secretariat where live 2 battalions of CRPF

Shopian: It has been four years but the authorities are yet to figure out another accommodation for CRPF personnel guarding the mini-secretariat Shopian who are occupying two storeys of Block C of this building.
Besides occupying rooms, the troops have also blocked the entrance of Block C of the building, which creates problems for staff and visitors, particularly women.
“They have erected barricades inside the building. At times, for visiting another office, one has to come out of the building and walk all the way to another entrance to reach there,” said Showkat Ahmad, a local.
This multi-storey building was constructed with the purpose of housing different government departments at one place. Its foundation was laid in 2011 and construction begun at estimated cost of Rs 36 crore.
Shopian’s mini-secretariat was inaugurated for official work in 2016, but just a few months later it was torched by protesters. The authorities then deployed a company of central reserve police force (CRPF) to guard it.
“There was no other accommodation for the CRPF in the premises of the mini-secretariat, which forced the authorities to give them Block C of this building to stay in. Since then they are there,” said an official deputed there.
Because of the CRPF’s occupation of two storeys, many of the departments that were supposed to be located here are still functioning from their old locations, officials told Kashmir Reader. Departments which are yet to be shifted here include Roads and Buildings, Jal Shakti, Power Development, Irrigation and Floods Control, and many others.
“One company of CRPF was deputed here after the building was torched, and later another company was brought in, swelling the number of troops to 260,” an official informed.
Deputy Commissioner Shopian Choudhary Muhammad Yasin told Kashmir Reader that his office will soon figure out separate accommodation for the troops.
“There is no such space in the mini-secretariat premises to house troops. We showed them two other locations but those according to them were not feasible,” he said, adding that the security of the mini-secretariat is also a critical issue.

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