Jawans of Government Railways Police, manning and patrolling the track, will no longer be forced to relax in ‘shabby’ shanties as more than 60 prefabricated huts are coming up for them along Lakhanpur-Katra rail track.
“Poor condition of shanties were making it difficult for jawans to perform their duties efficiently. Proper facilities are mandatory requisite for any force to perform duties in a professional manner,” official sources here said.
A request letter was addressed to the Ministry of Home Affairs seeking better infrastructure following which funds were sanctioned and Jammu and Kashmir Police in collaboration with GRP Jammu initiated the process of constructing prefabricated huts.
“In the first phase, 64 huts are being constructed from Lakhanpur to Katra alongside the railway track for the jawans guarding the track,” sources here told UNI.
“The huts constructed are of four types (2, 3 and 4 rooms) and being established depending upon the location and strength of the jawans required near the particular site,” sources added and said that different numbers of jawans are deployed at separate locations like bridges, culverts and tunnels.
“The prefabricated huts are coming up at a distance of every 2 to 3 kilometre and in first phase 64 huts are being raised,” sources told UNI and further added that in the second phase as well, more huts will be constructed to provide better living facility to jawans guarding the track.
Pertinent to mention here that the rail distance from Lakhanpur to Katra is around 150 kilometres.
In between, beats (posts), police stations and police posts are also set, they said and added, “in upcoming huts, barracks are also under consideration in few.”
“With this new infrastructure, not only the working efficiency of jawans will get doubled but also help them in performing duties more professionally even if they have to work round the clock,” said an official.
It is a joint initiative of GRP and Police Headquarters after sanction of funds by the Ministry of Home Affairs. They are being constructed by Police Construction Division (PCD).
More than 750 regular jawans are patrolling along the track from Lakhanpur to Katra on routine basis besides 532 Special Police Officers.