Heavy exchange of fire along the International Border (IB) across Jammu frontier claimed the life of a BSF Head Constable on Thursday while Pakistan-sponsored infiltrators killed a soldier and injured another one in Tangdhar sector of north Kashmir. However, the Indian Army foiled an infiltration bid. The BSF also claimed to have killed one Pakistan Ranger and injured another one in retaliation.
The State remained on the edge as eight civilians were injured in firing by Pakistan Rangers even as normal life remained paralysed in capital Srinagar. So far three BSF personnel have attained martyrdom in the fresh flare up of tensions along the IB.
The BSF is also learnt to have caused extensive damage to at least six border outposts on the Pakistani side of the border.
The Pakistan Army on Thursday evening intensified shelling in Mankote, Mendhar and Balakote sectors along the line of Control (loC) in Poonch district.
According to field reports, the Pakistan Army was pounding several forward villages using 82 mm mortars and heavy weapons.
Panic-stricken villagers have been camping inside bunkers and safer places to avoid getting hit by splinters.
This is for the first time that Pakistani troops have activated the entire stretch of the IB and the loC in Jammu province. Senior Army and BSF officers were keeping a close watch on the situation on the frontiers and sending regular updates to the Union Home Ministry and Defence Ministry.
Fresh exchange of firing was also reported from Hiranagar and Samba sectors in the evening. Twelve-year-old Sheetal Kumari and 35-year-old Reeta were injured in the intense border shelling in Pansar Village of Hiranagar.
Several hundred people were forced to shift to safer places even along the loC while more villagers from the worst-hit areas of Hiranagar, RS Pura, Arnia migrated to safer places ahead of Diwali.
The district authorities have pressed the State machinery into service to evacuate villagers in bullet proof vehicles to prevent any loss of life.
A BSF spokesman said that a BSF Head Constable attained martyrdom after receiving a fatal injury in RS Pura sector late on Wednesday night. “He succumbed to his injuries while he was being shifted to a nearby hospital. The BSF Head Constable has been identified as Jitendra Kumar of Motihari district in Bihar. His mortal remains would be shifted to his native village on Friday after a ceremonial farewell,” he said.
“In response, BSF troops in Arnia and RS Pura sectors killed one Pakistan Ranger and seriously injured another in the retaliatory firing,” a senior BSF officer said.
Six civilians were injured during intense firing in RS Pura and Arnia sectors along the IB in Jammu district.
Pakistan troops also violated the ceasefire on the loC by resorting to firing in Sunderbani sector of Rajouri district early in the morning.
Meanwhile, a soldier was killed and another was injured when security forces foiled an infiltration bid in Tangdhar sector of north Kashmir. The infiltration bid took place at a time when the troops along the entire stretch of loC and IB with Pakistan in Jammu & Kashmir are on a high alert due to ingress attempts and cross-border shelling.
Sources said a gunfight and search operation continued in the area till late in the night. They said that a group of militants attempted to sneak into Kashmir Valley in Tangdhar on Thursday afternoon. The group was challenged by the security forces triggering a gunfight that resulted in the death of a soldier.
“One soldier has laid down his life and another is injured. The operation in the area is continuing,” an Army officer said. He said the operation was in progress till the last reports came in. The identity of the slain soldier was not ascertained immediately.
The infiltration bids continued in the loC areas despite a “surgical strike” launched by the Indian troops on September 29 that was aimed to smash the militant launch pads across the loC. Four infiltration bids have been foiled since the strikes.
Defence sources said that militants escalate infiltration bids during the autumn months before the snowfall that forces closure of the mountain passes for several months. Intelligence reports say that around 300 militants were eagerly waiting to cross the loC before the onset of winter season. The Multi-Agency Centre headed by Intelligence Bureau has revealed that as many as 87 militants have infiltrated into Kashmir by the September-end. This indicates the rise in level of infiltration as 33 militants had sneaked into Valley in the corresponding period last year.