General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Indian Army's 15 Corps, Lieutenant General D.P. Pandey on Saturday said that Kashmir is more peaceful now compared to what it had been previously because of the important security parameters that had been put in place.
He said that these steps had ensured that recruitment of local militants, incidents of stone pelting and calls for shutdowns and strikes were at an all-time low.
Talking to reporters on the side-lines of the Gulmarg Sports Festival, which has been jointly organised by the Army and the Gulmarg Development Authority (GDA), Lt. Gen. Pandey, however, cautioned that “White Collar” militants are trying very hard to lure teenagers between the age group of 16 to 19 to take to the path of violence, drug abuse and fanning disturbance in society.
“Kashmir indeed is more peaceful this year compared to the past few years. This is because there is a huge tourist influx at the beginning of this year and we expect a record number of tourist arrivals,” Pandey said in reply to a query whether Kashmir was changing and heading towards peace.
“These security parameters are well under control and much needed to ensure peace. You hardly see stone pelting and bandh calls nowadays,” he said.
The senior army officer said, “It is easy to brainwash very young minds. Controlling local militant recruitment was and is very important for us and we are following a collective approach for which we need societies’ support as the government and the army are already on job.”
Replying to another query, Lt. Gen. Pandey said the army's calendar of events for this summer is full to ensure that a message of peace in Kashmir is projected globally.
“The summer season is approaching; the army is ready with its calendar having sufficient events in the pipeline to ensure the tourism, which is the backbone of the Kashmir economy, remains intact. We expect a record number of tourist arrivals this year as already one lakh tourists have already visited Gulmarg so far,” the GOC said.
"Considering the peaceful atmosphere, people across the world should visit the valley to boost the economy and generate employment for locals," he said.