Restrictions were imposed in some areas of Srinagar and senior separatist leaders were placed under house arrest on Friday, a day when Narendra Modi arrives in Jammu and Kashmir for his first visit as Prime Minister.
“Restrictions have been imposed in five police station areas of Khanyar, Rainawari, Nowhatta, M.R. Gunj and Safa Kadal (on Friday) to maintain law and order in the city,” a police official told IANS in Srinagar.
Senior separatist leaders including Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Muhammad Yasin Malik and Shabir Ahmad Shah have been placed under house arrest in Srinagar.
Separatists have called for a protest shutdown in the Valley Friday to coincide with the prime minister’s visit.
Shops, educational institutions, public transport and other businesses remained closed in Srinagar and other major towns of the Valley in response to the separatist call.
Banks, post offices and government offices, however, functioned normally in the Valley albeit with lesser attendance due to non-availability of public transport.
The Prime Minister arrives in winter capital Jammu from where he will take a helicopter ride to Katra town in Reasi district.
After inaugurating the 25-km rail link between Katra, the base town of Mata Vaishnoo Devi shrine and Udhampur town, Mr. Modi will fly to summer capital Srinagar.
Mr. Modi’s engagements in the Valley include addressing a Sainik Sammelan in Badami Bagh cantonment in Srinagar, chairing a high level security review meeting and a luncheon interaction with the State Governor N.N. Vohra.
In the afternoon, the Mr. Modi is scheduled to inaugurate the 240 megawatt NHPC hydropower project near Uri town of north Kashmir Baramulla district.
The Prime Minister will fly back to New Delhi in the evening.
