Chandigarh, Sep 9 (PTI) In view of the ongoing G20 Summit in Delhi, the Punjab Police has strengthened deployment across the border state as part of a red alert.

Police have also conducted flag marches in sensitive areas of the state.

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"A red alert has been sounded in Punjab to ensure a peaceful conduct of the ongoing grand event, G20 Summit, in Delhi, with Punjab Police further strengthening the security across the border state," said an official statement issued here on Saturday.

"As directed by Director General of Police (DGP), Punjab, Gaurav Yadav, police teams have also conducted flag marches at all the sensitive areas in all the 28 police districts from 9 am to 11 am simultaneously, followed by cordon-and-search operations (CASOs) at all the railway stations and bus stands from 2 pm to 7 pm," it added.

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Quoting Special DGP (Law and Order) Arpit Shukla, the statement said the police teams, led by gazetted officers, conducted flag marches in the sensitive and vulnerable areas of their respective districts. A total of 139 flag marches were conducted, covering 228 sensitive and vulnerable areas in all the 28 police districts.

Shukla said the exercise was aimed at boosting the confidence of the public, besides preparing the police personnel to tackle any untoward situation.

The officer said the CPs and SSPs were also directed to conduct special cordon-and-search operations under the supervision of SP-rank officers at and around all the bus stands and railway stations in the state.

"We had strictly instructed all the police personnel to deal with every person in a friendly and polite manner while frisking them during the course of this operation," Shukla added.

He said 255 police teams, involving more than 1,500 personnel, were deputed across the state to look for suspicious people at the railway stations and bus stands, while ensuring minimum inconvenience to the public.

More than 3,660 people were checked during the operation conducted at 159 bus stands and 131 railway stations, Shukla said, adding that the police teams have apprehended some people for questioning.

Meanwhile, the CPs and SSPs have also been asked to intensify the police nakas within their jurisdiction and conduct checking of all the suspicious vehicles, he said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)