Retreat Ceremony BSF proposes facelift for venue

From The TribuneSarbjit Dhaliwal/TNS

Jalandhar, September 1
As the Retreat ceremony at the Wagah border has been attracting a large number of tourists, the BSF has proposed steps to the Union Government to improve infrastructure and other facilities for them. Lack of facilities, especially proper seating arrangements, is a sore point that spoils the charm of the ceremony.
IG (BSF) Himmat Singh Gill said efforts were on to improve infrastructure there.
Sources in the BSF said three steps had been proposed to the Union Home Ministry to make tourists’ visit comfortable and to provide better and a close view of the ceremony to them.
One of the steps is to install LCD screens to show the ceremony live to those who fail to get a seat close the ceremony point.
Other proposal is to expand the seating capacity of the existing stand that is on the left side of the road leading to the post from 6,500 to 8,000. The third proposal is to build a new U-shape stand having larger capacity to accommodate 20,000 persons. Across the border, Pakistan has build horseshoe type impressive stands having better seating capacity. As an integrated checkpost (ICP) is being built at a cost of Rs 200 crore there to handle trade goods, traffic flow will shift to the ICP and more space will become available to beautify the area where the ceremony is held.