Several cattle perish, houses extensively damaged in villages
School students also targeted; 2 injured, others survive
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Aug 28: Pakistan has shifted focus from the Line of Control (LoC) to International Border (IB) targeting civilian areas and forward BSF posts in RS Pura and Arnia sectors overnight killing three civilians including two women and injuring 17 others including two school students by firing heavy 82 mm mortars and using Machine Guns and other automatic weapons causing huge devastation to civilian property. More than dozen cattle perished in the firing while over 25 others were seriously injured.
The ceasefire violations came just a day after India and Pakistan announced that BSF and Rangers level talks would be held as usual in New Delhi from September 9 to 13 notwithstanding cancellation of NSA level talks between the two hostile neighbours on August 23 and 24 in view of heavy shelling on the LoC in twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch and Pakistan’s insistence on meeting with the separatists.
Pakistan claimed that eight civilians were killed and 47 others including 22 women were injured on their side in Charwa sector of Sialkot district opposite Arnia and RS Pura in retaliatory firing by the BSF while several posts of the Chenab Rangers, who were targeting civilian areas on the Indian side, were damaged.
Official sources told the Excelsior Pakistani Rangers’ Thathi post first fired a burst on BSF patrol party at Aik Nullah in Arnia sector at 11.45 pm last night. The BSF party survived and didn’t respond. After 20 minutes, the Rangers fired four bursts in the same area. In the next few minutes, another post of the Rangers fired four mortar shells and opened firing with Machine Gun at Nawa Pind in RS Pura sector at 12.45 am. This time, the BSF retaliated.
By 1.45 am, the Rangers activated almost half of the RS Pura and Arnia sectors directly targeting the civilian population in the villages and about 17 forward BSF posts in the two sectors, sources said, adding that very high intensity shelling took place between 4 am to 6.30 am that caused the maximum casualties of both civilians and cattle including fatal and non-fatal and devastating houses, shops, cattle shed and other property of the border dwellers.
“There was very effective response given to Pakistan by the BSF. Pakistan side suffered heavy damages, far more than India,” sources said, adding several posts of the Pakistani Rangers, which were targeting the Indian side with mortars and automatic weapons, were damaged in retaliatory firing by the Indian side.
Heavy shelling stopped at 6.30 am, which was followed by intermittent exchange of shelling and firing till 9 am after which the firing ceased.
Sources said three civilians were killed and 17 others injured, some of them seriously in Pakistan shelling and firing in Arnia and RS Pura sectors. Abdullian, Joura Farm and Korotana in RS Pura sector and Sei Khurd in Arnia sector bore brunt of the damages while several other forward villages also suffered heavy damage.
Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh along with senior party leaders and officers of civil and police administration and top brass of BSF visited the border areas. Dr Singh met the firing victims at Abdullian and assured them of all help from the State Government.
The dead have been identified as Pawan Kumar, 55, son of Ajit Singh R/o Abdullian, Banso Devi, 42, wife of Bhola Ram and Kanta Devi, 30, wife of Subash Chander, residents of Sei Khurd in Arnia. Kanta Devi succumbed to her injuries in the Government Medical College, Jammu while two others had died on spot.
Deceased Pawan Kumar’s younger brother Sham Lal told the Excelsior at village Abdullian that his brother (Pawan Kumar) and father Ajit Singh had gone to their dairy, few yards away from their house for collecting milk and sell it to the people, which was their routine morning job when a shell fell on roof of adjoining house and its splinters hit both of them.
Sham Lal said his brother Pawan Kumar died on spot while Ajit Singh lost his right arm. Several cattle were also killed or injured in the dairy. Sham Lal and one of his brothers were handicapped by birth. Pawan Kumar and Ajit Singh were running the dairy to earn the livelihood. Sham said now his father has also been rendered handicapped by the Pakistani shelling. Late this evening, Sham Lal was referred to Amritsar for advanced treatment.
Another mortar shell fell inside the house of two brothers–Bhola Ram and Subash Chander, who were putting up in joint house at Sei Khurd in Arnia sector rattling the house and killing wives of Bhola Ram (Banso Devi) and Subash Chander (Kanta Devi) and injuring their mother Indro Devi and Subash Chander and Bhola Ram themselves besides two children of Subash, Mahi, 9 and Shivangi, 11.
Wailing Subash Chander said his wife Kanta Devi had just sent the two children for school after readying them with uniform and tiffin for the school when a heavy mortar shell fell on their house and destroyed everything.
“We have lost everything-the house, household goods and above all two women. Both of us (Subash and Bhola Ram) are lying in the hospital with two children and mother,” Subash, 38, said after preliminary treatment in the GMC Jammu.
Mahi and Shivangi, the children of Subash were among several others students of Sei Khurd, who were heading for the school at around 7 pm when mortar shells started raining the border areas. The students rushed back to their houses. While other students reached safely, Mahi and Shivangi were injured and have been admitted in the GMC Jammu with splinter injuries.
“About 25 school children had very narrow escape as mortar shell fell and exploded just in front of them in a field,” sources said, adding it was ridiculous on part of Pakistan to target innocent and minor school going children.
The village Sei Khurd had virtually become a ghost town with majority of people and cattle staying indoors. There was activity going on only in the houses of Subash Chander and Bhola Ram, where relatives and officers/officials were visiting. It was at about 4 pm that family members cremated the bodies of Banso Devi and Kanta Devi in the village.
The people joining the cremation were highly critical of Pakistani Rangers for directly targeting the civilian areas and killing and injuring a number of them. Body of Pawan Kumar was also cremated at Abdullian in the afternoon after post-mortem was conducted by the doctors on all three bodies, which were handed over to the family members.
Sources said a large number of houses have been damaged in overnight shelling in forward villages of RS Pura and Arnia sectors. The local administration was assessing the damages and exact number of houses, cattle shed and other property including crops damaged in Pakistan’s shelling and firing.
At least dozen cattle have also perished in the shelling last night while 25 to 30 others were injured, which were being treated in the Veterinary hospitals.
“We get very meager compensation for damages caused to our houses and killings and injuries to the cattle. This needs to be increased,” said Ram Lal, a civilian at Abdullian, where several cattle were killed in Pakistan firing last night.
The civilians in the border villages regretted that Pakistan has spoiled their Raksha Bandhan festival for second consecutive year. “In 2014, we were in relief camps at Arnia and Bishnah during Raksha Bandhan festival due to Pakistan’s shelling. This year, we are in deep trouble having forced to confine ourselves to the houses. We can’t even move out to purchase Raksha Bandhan sacred thread,” a woman, Ram Pyari said in the forward village of Korotana.
There was also strong resentment among the border dwellers against the Centre and State Governments, which, they said, have done nothing to save them from the Pakistani shelling and firing.
“Knowingly that Pakistan will not mend its ways, the Centre and State Governments should have taken steps for our safety. However, nothing has happened except for assurances,” they lamented.
Sources said such was the impact of Pakistan’s shelling from 4 pm to 6.30 pm that big bang of shell explosions was heard as far as Jammu City. The people in the border villages of RS Pura and Arnia sectors, who had come out of their houses for morning work including working in the fields and the students, who were heading to the schools, immediately rushed back and confined themselves to houses. Some of the people, who had constructed their own bunkers, took shelter there till the shelling and firing ceased at 9 pm.
Majority of the people remained confined to the houses and didn’t venture out except the firing victims, who had to attend dead and injured civilians and cattle and remove `mulba’ of the damaged houses and cattle shed.
People said a number of mortar shells were lying in their fields, which were being disposed of by the Bomb Disposal Squads of BSF and police.
However, there had been no migration of the people from any forward area of RS Pura and Arnia sectors so far but the administration had put contingency plan in place if the people migrated to safer areas. The administration has identified Government buildings for accommodating the people.
Nawa Pind, Joura Farm, Chandu Chak, Abdullian, Vidhipur, Sangral, Korotana, Gharana, Baaspur and Jugnu Chak apart from their surrounding villages in RS Pura sector, Sei Khurd and Devigarh in Arnia sector suffered maximum damage in Pakistan’s sudden and unprovoked shelling and firing overnight.
“The people in all forward villages of Arnia and RS Pura were panicky and have confined themselves to their houses and bunkers. Authorities have also advised them to stay indoors till the situation normalized,” sources said, adding the BSF was ready to meet with any situation on the borders.
Not only in Arnia and RS Pura, reports said that people all over the forward areas of IB in Jammu sector had confined themselves to their houses after 7 pm today anticipating that Pakistan could fire in any of the areas.
Pakistan, meanwhile, claimed that eight civilians were killed and 47 others injured including 22 women at Charwa sector of Sialkot district on their side in retaliatory firing by the BSF.
They said Pakistani forward villages of Umranwali, Kundanpur, Thathi Khurd, Thathi Kalan, Mahendrwal, Khanor, Jamal Jand, Dhamalan, Harpal, Anola, Harnawali, Dhol Malanay, Sihailpur, Salehpur and Nandpur Bajragarh, Sujeetgarh, Harpal and Chaprar sectors of Sialkot district were hit hard by the BSF shelling. They added that dead and injured have been taken to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) Sialkot.
On August 15 and 16, Pakistan army had shelled civilian areas on the LoC in Balakote sector of Poonch district killing six civilians and wounding 20 others. The firing and shelling on the LoC in twin border districts of Poonch and Rajouri had last over a fortnight. Pakistan has also suffered extensive damage in retaliatory firing by the Indian troops.
In view of tense LoC and Pakistan’s insistence on meeting separatists, the NSA level talks were called off.
Now, the border guards of India and Pakistan (BSF and Rangers) were scheduled to meet from September 9 to 13 in New Delhi. Sources didn’t rule out the possibility of the Rangers resorting to shelling and firing to sabotage the talks.
Meanwhile, 17 injured of last night’s shelling and firing undergoing treatment in the GMC Jammu and Sub District Hospital, RS Pura have been identified as Shakina Bibi, 60, wife of Mohammad Ali, Makhan Din, 26, son of Mohammad Ali, Liyaqat Ali, 30, son of Mohammad Ali and Saleema Bibi, 28, wife of Mohammad Bari, all residents of Joura Farm, RS Pura, Vijay Kumar, 24, son of Mohan Lal, R/o Chandu Chak, Ajit Lal, 75, son of Labu Ram, Girdhari Lal, 40, son of Taru Ram, Waryam Singh, 70, son of Chatru Ram, Vicky Kumar, 25, son of Romesh Lal, Raj Kumar, 42, son of Baldev Raj and Nisha Devi, 34 wife of Joginder Singh, all residents of Abdullian, RS Pura.
Subash Chander, 38, son of Karam Chand, Bhola Ram, 52, son of Karam Chand, Indro Devi, 70, wife of Karam Chand, Mahi, 9, daughter of Subash Chander and Shivangi, 11, daughter of Subash Chander, all residents of Sei Khurd in Arnia sector and Rajiv, 21, son of Rattan Lal R/o Korotana.
PTI adds from Islamabad: Pakistan today summoned Indian High Commissioner TCA Raghavan and lodged a strong protest over alleged ceasefire violations, saying at least eight civilians were killed in firing by Indian troops.
Pakistan Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry summoned Raghavan to convey that today’s ceasefire violations by the Indian side were not acceptable, sources said.
Chaudhry handed over the protest note to Raghavan, who was accompanied by his deputy J P Singh.
“While condemning the Indian practice of targeting civilians on purpose, Pakistan expressed its deep concern at the continued hostility at the LoC and the Working Boundary,” the Foreign Office (FO) said in a statement.
It said six civilians were killed and 47 others, including 22 women, were injured due to firing by Indian troops across Harpal and Chaprar sectors near Sialkot.
Later, military spokesman Major General Asim Saleem Bajwa said the toll rose to eight people, including one woman and one child.
“Pakistani troops initially exercised restraint however, responded befittingly when India started heavy firing. The firing ended today at 1100 hours.
“The Indian Government was urged to stop forthwith the ceasefire violations and observe the 2003 Ceasefire Arrangement for restoration of peace and tranquility at the LoC and the Working Boundary,” it said.
This comes less than a week after Pakistan called off the first-ever NSA-level talks between the two countries amid acrimony.
Follow our WhatsApp channel