New Delhi, June 29: The Government of India has offered all possible help for the reconstruction of revered Dastgeer Sahab (RA) shrine which was gutted in a devastating fire early this week.
 Home Minister P Chidambaram Monday said that he has spoken to Union Renewable Energy Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on this matter.
 “I have told them that the Centre will provide all possible support in rebuilding the shrine. In this regard INTACH has already been asked to provide all assistance to the state government to restore the shrine to its old glory,” he observed.
 Chidambaram expressed concern on the incident. “We are deeply sorry that such a revered shrine has been destroyed in fire,” he added.
 Regarding the cause of fire, he said that the central intelligence agencies are working in close coordination with the state police to establish the cause.
 On the question of revocation of the controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), the Home Minister said that there was no change in the situation and the matter was still under consideration of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS). He said that the Ministry still maintains the stand that certain amendments are required in the Act while state government feels that it should be partially removed from certain areas of Jammu and Kashmir.
 Meanwhile, the Home Ministry has refused to be drawn into controversy on reports of Major Avtar Singh having committed suicide after killing his family in USA. He was involved in fake encounters and had since managed to flee to USA. Asked to confirm the reports, Chidambaram retorted: “What is there to confirm. It has been widely reported in the media and everyone knows about the incident.”
 He disclosed that the Centre has provided 85 additional Companies of Central Armed Police Forces to the state to strengthen security for Amarnath pilgrimage. These include 66 from CRPF including two women companies and 19 from the BSF.
 The Centre has reimbursed an amount of Rs 108.33 crore to J&K Government during the month of June under the Security Related Expenditure scheme.

Lastupdate on : Fri, 29 Jun 2012 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Fri, 29 Jun 2012 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Sat, 30 Jun 2012 00:00:00 IST