india

Updated: Jan 03, 2019 10:34 IST

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to visit Gurdaspur in Punjab and address the public at ‘Dhanwad Rally’ on Thursday. The rally is being organised by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) at the PUDA Grounds on Gurdaspur-Batala road.

BJP president Amit Shah,former Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, former deputy CM and SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal, Union minister Harsimrat Kaur, Union finance minister Arun Jaitley, Union minister of state Vijay Sampla, Punjab BJP president Shwait Malik, BJP national vicepresident Avinash Rai Khanna, BJP national secretary Tarun Chug, Punjab BJP Lok Sabha in-charge Captain Abhimaniyu and Punjab BJP in-charge Prabhat Jha will also be present.

Punjab BJP media in-charge Maj RS Gill (retd) said that a 60x24 waterproof stage has been put up, besides laying a pandal covering around 10 acre, on which elaborate sitting arrangement has been made.

Over 5,000 security personnel, including National Security Guards, have been deployed for security. BJP workers from across state will reach the rally venue by buses and other means of transport.

SAD spokesperson Dr Daljeet Singh Cheema said that SAD is also involved in PM’s rally preparations.

State BJP president Shwait Malik said that the rally is being held by the people of Punjab to thank the PM for development of the region. Malik said people are especially thankful to Modi for opening the Kartarpur Corridor and making a special investigation team (SIT), which led to conviction of Sajjan Kumar in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots case.

Singer Hans Raj Hans, singeractor Ranjit Bawa, and anchor Satwinder Satti will entertain the attendees before Modi’s arrival. The rally will start at 10.30am, while Modi is expected to arrive a few hours later.

Meanwhile, Punjab Police have tightened security at the border districts prior to the PM’s Gurdaspur visit, to address his first election rally. Nearly 8,000 security personnel have been deployed. Police from Amritsar, Pathankot, Gurdaspur and Batala have been put on security for the PM visit.

Over 200 CCTV cameras and 60 metal detectors have been installed at the rally venue. CCTVs have also been installed at Batala, Gurdaspur, and Pathankot-Gurdaspur national highway.