With the peaceful culmination of the Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan-based terrorist groups, operating in the Pir Panjal region, are once again planning to target security forces in the area.
Late Wednesday night, alert troops after observing suspicious movement of a group of heavily armed terrorists challenged them in the thickly forested area of Gursai top in Poonch. Taking advantage of the pitch-dark conditions and undulating hostile terrain the group of terrorists may have managed to flee the area.
To track down their footprints, the security forces swiftly launched a massive search operation at Mohri Shahstar in the Gursai top area of Poonch district.
According to preliminary reports, security forces also resorted to speculative firing to prevent any ambush in the area.
Earlier on May 4, a gruesome attack took place on the Indian Air Force (IAF) vehicles in the same area in which one IAF personnel hailing from Madhya Pradesh sacrificed his life while four others received multiple bullet injuries in the surprise attack.
At daybreak, fresh reinforcements were rushed to plug the gaps.
According to official sources, security forces have deployed drones and sniffer dogs, while a helicopter was also seen hovering over the forest area this morning. A similar exercise was launched by the security forces in the Rajouri district following information about the movement of three suspected terrorists in the early hours of Thursday.
During the day the security forces searched general areas at Kundan and adjoining villages in the Shadra Sharief area.
Additional troops were also rushed to the area to tighten the outer cordon. The jawans of the Indian army have been kept in a state of high alert in the entire area following fresh inputs about the movement of terrorists in the area.
Meanwhile, the General Officer Commanding of Jammu-based White Knight Corps Lt Gen Navin Sachdeva visited Doda and reviewed the security situation and operational preparedness in the hilly district which was rocked by several terror incidents in the recent past.
Lt Gen Sachdeva along with the General Officer Commanding of Counter-Insurgency Force Delta visited Sohanda in the Doda sector to review the security situation and operational preparedness, the White-Knight Corps wrote on X.
“GOC appreciated the unwavering commitment and dedication of all ranks towards maintaining peace and security in the region,” the army said.
