*Manhunt for militants
Jehangir Rashid
SRINAGAR, Apr 29: A huge cache of arms and ammunition has been recovered from Safapora-Kralgund forest range in Handwara area of frontier Kupwara district. The operation was carried out jointly by police and army. However, no arrests were made during the operation.
The recovery of the huge haul of arms and ammunition is being considered as one of the great successes achieved by police and security forces in the recent past. Police and security forces have launched a manhunt to nab the militants who might have left behind the arms and ammunition while moving to a safer place.
Police officials said that the operation was carried out by police and army near the forest range of Safapora-Kralgund, Handwara adding that the recovery was made from a nallah. They said the huge cache of arms and ammunition was concealed in the forest range adding that the operation was carried on the basis of inputs received in this regard.
“The recoveries included a Chinese Pistol, four under barrel grenade launchers (UBGL), two Pistol Magazines, two Pika magazines, two Improvised Explosive Device (IED) standard boxes, three radio sets with Antenna, two Circuit IEDs, nine rounds of Pika gun, 210 rounds of AK-47 rifle and a Pouch,” said the police officials.
Police have registered a case with police station Handwara in this regard and further investigations have been taken up. Police is trying to develop the leads which they have got regarding the presence of militants and their activities in the entire forest range engulfing Handwara area.
The police officials said that a manhunt has been launched to nab the militants who had placed the huge cache of arms and ammunition in the forest range. They said the militants might have left behind the arms and ammunition in order to move to a safer place without being suspected by the police and security forces.
“The forest range of Handwara in Kupwara has seen some of the bloodiest encounters and recently there were at least two major encounters in which around 10 militants were killed. Since the militants are on run we suspect that they have left behind the arms and ammunition. A manhunt has been launched to arrest the militants and we are hopeful that the operation would be successful very soon,” said the police officials.
They added that Zachaldara forest range in Handwara area of Kupwara has turned out to be one of the safe places for hideout of militants adding that good number of militants might be present there. This forest range has seen some of the raids by the police and security forces and some militants have been trapped in the cordon and search operation carried out by both the police and security forces.
Police and army officials have been maintaining that there is presence of militants in the forest ranges and countryside of the North Kashmir. They said concentration of militants is more in Kupwara district along with the Gurez belt of the North Kashmir’s Bandipora district.
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