Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, July 12: For the first time this year, Pakistani troops violated ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir valley to push in militants who have been waiting in large numbers on the launch pads in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK).
Sources said that Pakistani troops today fired upon Indian posts in Nowgam sector of Kupwara district this morning by using machine guns and mortars in which one Army personnel was injured.
Sources said that the firing started at around 11 a.m. and continued till 4:30 p.m. on Indian posts in Kayan bowl where 3-Kumaon of Army is posted. One Army personnel, Lance Naik Anand Kumar, was injured in the Pakistani firing. He was removed to Army’s 92-Base hospital in Srinagar for treatment.
Indian troops also fired back and intermittent firing is still going on. The Army has apprehensions that under the cover of firing by Pakistani troops, they are trying to push in militants.
The Army has intensified its vigil and patrolling in the Kayan bowl area for the possibility of infiltration by militants. The area has dense bushes and Army apprehends that militants might have crossed under the cover of Pakistani troops firing.
According to official figures in 2012 and 2013, there have been 541 infiltration attempts in Jammu and Kashmir and majority of them were foiled by troops.
Army sources said that around 400 militants are waiting on launch pads along the 740 kilometer LoC between India and Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir. These militants have been waiting there since May for infiltrating into Kashmir and tight vigil by Army is hampering their designs.
Sources said that the militant commanders are desperate to push in militants into Kashmir valley after successful operations by police and Army in the Valley this year killed 43 militants including 12 top commanders of Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) and 23 of them were arrested.
With these successful operations the number of militants, as per police reports have come down to 130. Around two dozen local youth joined militancy this year but sources said commanders in Pakistan want to infiltrate militant leadership on priority.
Army also conducted searches in some forest areas of Chowkibal sector in district Kupwara following suspicious movement at Gugaldara forest area yesterday. During the searches, Army recovered some ammunition which includes 3 UBGL, one live and two fired, and 42 AK ammunition, 41 fired and 1 live, from the Gugaldara forest area.
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