A poster with a warning pasted on a wall at Pathankot Air Force Station. Tribune photo

Ravi Dhaliwal

Tribune News Service

Pathankot, June 9

Security was beefed up today and “shoot at sight” orders issued at the Pathankot air base, spread over 16 square km, on Intelligence inputs.   Several posters have been put up on the boundary wall of the air base, warning that anybody found intruding into the security zone will be shot dead. Sources said the security agencies had received “credible intelligence inputs” that necessitated tightening of the security net. “We have got some inputs and want to follow these up. We cannot take chances. The security at the air base was upped when Home Minister Rajnath Singh visited it on June 4. Ever since, the vigil has not been downgraded; rather, it has been beefed up. The vigil has also been intensified in 20 villages near the Zero Line. A flag march was conducted by the Army, BSF and police to instil confidence among the people. We are also keeping an eye on the Gujjars (shepherds) living near the border as their links with terrorists cannot be ruled out,” said an officer.SSP Rakesh Kaushal said the flag march was a routine affair. “I requested the Army and the BSF to help us sanitise the area. Fifteen vehicles were pressed into service and these covered 20 ‘most sensitive’ villages. The operation was handled by SP (Operations) HP Sharma, who has been posted at the Narot Jaimal Singh police station for day-to-day surveillance along the border. His job is to coordinate with the BSF, Army, Intelligence and the J&K Police,” he said.“Under normal circumstances,” an Army officer said, “whenever any suspicious person tries to enter the premises, he is challenged  before being fired at. Now, the intruders will not be challenged. They will be shot dead.”  On January 2, terrorists  entered the air base and shot dead seven security personnel before NSG sharpshooters gunned them down.