For the first time since 2014, the army took up positions in rural areas of four trouble-tossed South Kashmir districts of Pulwama, Shopian, Kulgam and Anantnag, ToI reported on Saturday.
Sources said authorities are contemplating clamping down on protesters across the valley with both the state and centre, in consultation with each other, deciding on redeploying troops in rural areas from where they were removed during the last two years.
Sources said authorities may even suspend mobile and internet services across the valley in view of the protest calendar issued by the joint resistance leaders, an amalgam of separatists, over the coming days. The separatists have called for UN chalo (march) on Tuesday on Eid.
Call for protest rallies, particularly on Eid, have made state and Central governments all too aware that there could be one more attempt at a flaring up of the situation before the current round of agitation is stamped out.