Ultras had commando training; ‘Chicken Achari’, ‘Chicken Kadhai’ packets have Pakistani markings
The slain militants, who carried out the daring attack on the Army camp in Uri on Friday, were commandos trained by the Pakistan Army, the Indian security establishment has analysed. The recovery of the two sawed-off shotguns that are used by commando forces across the world, including the National Security Guard and Special Forces confirmed that the militants were trained by professionals, most probably Pakistan’s elite commando unit Special Services Group (SSG).
In fact, two earlier fierce encounters in Arnia near Jammu and Naugam near Srinagar in the last one fortnight also had clear imprint of commando tactics. Faced with this fact, the security forces have not ruled out similar attacks in the coming days with militants kitted in high-end military gear with specialised commando weapons hitting high-value targets. “Pakistan is now sending the best lot of highly-motivated militants now and we have to redraw our strategy to deal with the new challenge,” officials admitted.
The sawed-off shotguns are used to blast off the hinges of locked doors to gain quick access into a room or any other enclosed space. This drill requires constant practice under the guidance of a trained commando and instructors of Pakistan SSG had imparted these skills to the militants, they said.
This apart, that the militants were backed by Islamabad was also evident from the fact that food packets like “Chicken Achari” and “Chicken Kadhai” besides dry fruits — which are part of “military rations” — had Pakistani markings.
Moreover, the militants were clad in Swiss-made mountaineering boots and high-quality winter clothing besides carrying other weapons like under-barrel grenade launchers, sophisticated night-vision binoculars, disposable rocket launchers, AK-47 rifles and GPS. This entire kit is exclusively used by Special Forces of almost all countries, thereby, clearly indicating that the Pakistan Army had supplied it to the militants.
In Srinagar, 15 Corps commander lt General Subrata Saha also confirmed the Pakistan connection saying, “Weapons found from terrorists killed in Valley attack show production by a Pakistani company while the food packets too were manufactured in Pakistan.”
The three back-to-back incidents indicated that the ISI and the Pakistan Army have now changed the training pattern of militants and focus is now giving commando training instead of teaching basic infantry tactics. Elaborating upon this crucial aspect, officials said the new lot of militants will have the capability of fighting pitched battles with Indian security forces for longer duration. They will also not be deterred by adverse weather conditions like snow as they are equipped for high-altitude warfare like regular armies, officials said.
Pakistan was forced to resort to this move due to drop in infiltration into Jammu & Kashmir from across the line of Control (loC) this year. More than 100 terrorists were neutralised either on the border or in the hinterland within a day or two after infiltrating as against 65 in last year. Also, the various terrorist organisations or “tanzeems” were unable to recruit local Kashmiri youth to sustain militancy.
In order to raise the ante during the ongoing election process, foreign militants trained in commando tactics will try to infiltrate and engineer incidents, sources said adding the all the six militants killed in Uri encounter were of foreign origin.
Neighbour from hell
The recovery of the two sawed-off shotguns confirmed that the militants were trained by professionals, most probably Pakistan’s elite commando unit Special Services Group (SSG) Pak Army supplied Swiss-made mountaineering boots, under-barrel grenade launchers, sophisticated night-vision binoculars, disposable rocket launchers
The three back-to-back incidents indicated that the ISI and the Pakistan Army have now changed the training pattern of militants and focus is now giving commando training instead of teaching basic infantry tactics