Srinagar: Kashmir remained shut for the 12th consecutive day on Friday, even as the authorities relaxed restrictions on the movement of people in Srinagar.
“Restrictions on the movement of people have been eased in most parts of the Valley. The situation so far has remained peaceful,” a senior official of the state administration said here.
He said while the deployment of security forces on the ground remains as earlier, people were allowed to move around the city and other towns.
Kashmir was placed a under a total clampdown on August 5, hours before Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced in the Rajya Sabha that the special status for the state had been revoked.
Governor Satya Pal Malik directed the resumption of normal functioning of the government secretariat and other offices after a review of the security scenario in the state on Thursday evening, he added.
The state administration has directed government employees to report at work from Friday through a radio announcement.
However, the communication clampdown continues as all telephone and Internet services remained suspended.
Governor Malik took the decision after a review of the security scenario in the state that ensured peaceful Independence Day celebrations across the state, including in its various district headquarters and elsewhere, a spokesperson said.
He said the government would be watching the situation during Friday prayers (namaaz) and based on the day’s developments, relaxations could be considered for the general public as well, he added.
While schools are closed for the past two weeks, shops and other business establishments too remained shut since August 5.
The official said the situation in the Valley was being monitored on a real-time basis and the decision to remove the forces would depend on the ground situation.
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