Dehradun (Uttarakhand) [India], April 26 (ANI): Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Saturday directed the senior officials to identify the Pakistani citizens residing in the state and start the process of sending them back with immediate effect.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister gave this direction during a meeting at his official residence.

This comes after terrorists attacked tourists at Baisaran meadow in Pahalgam on April 22, killing 25 Indian nationals and one Nepali citizen while leaving several others injured.

The Chief Minister said that strict action should be taken against the people taking advantage of government schemes on the basis of forged documents by expediting their identification. He also directed the officials to expedite the verification campaign going on in the state. The penalty should be imposed on those who do not get the tenants verified.

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has directed the officials to further strengthen the security arrangements on the Chardham Yatra route in view of the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, as the Chardham Yatra is going to start in the state from April 30. He said that if any suspicious person is seen on the Yatra route, he should be immediately detained.

Along with this, he directed the officials to issue toll-free numbers for information about suspicious activities including making the general public aware to remain alert.

Following the attack, India has taken strong counter-measures against Pakistan for its support to cross-border terrorism.

In the CCS meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in the presence of Home Minister Amit Shah, India decided to hold Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 in abeyance until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism.

India has also decided to close the integrated Attari Check Post with immediate effect. Further the country has decided to cancel any visas provided under SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) and ordered Pakistan to leave the country within 48 hours.India declared Defence/Military, Naval and Air Advisors in the Pakistani High Commission as Persona Non Grata and ordered to leave India within a week.

As a security measure, India has decided to withdraw its own Defence/Navy/Air Advisors from the Indian High Commission in Islamabad. These posts in the respective High Commissions are deemed annulled. Five support staff of the Service Advisors will also be withdrawn from both High Commissions.

The overall strength of the high commissions will be brought down to 30 from the present 55 through further reductions, to be effective by 1 May 2025.

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri announced the decisions in a press briefing on Wednesday after the CCS meeting. (ANI)