Kathua encounters exposed infiltration route: Police
A senior police officer on Wednesday said that the recent encounters in Kathua district “exposed” the route used by terrorists to infiltrate from across the International Border (IB).
A senior police officer on Wednesday said that the recent encounters in Kathua district “exposed” the route used by terrorists to infiltrate from across the International Border (IB).
Kathua district SSP Shobhit Saxena said, “The route used by the terrorists to enter Kathua district from across the IB has been detected and plugged.”
Saxena, however, refused to pinpoint the place citing security reasons.
“The route from where four to five terrorists infiltrated was identified and now plugged absolutely,” he said.
It may be stated here that the Border Security Force (BSF) guards the 200-km-long Indo-Pak international border from Paharpur in Punjab adjoining Kathua district to Akhnoor sector in Jammu district.
He also said the successful recovery of huge quantities of arms and ammunition including explosives from the terrorists after the gunfights foiled a sinister plan of the terror groups to carry out a major strike in Jammu and Kashmir.
Kathua district witnessed four encounters between a group of recently infiltrated terrorists and security forces in the past one month.
Two heavily armed terrorists were eliminated in Sufain forest near Jakhole on March 27. Four police personnel were also killed in the encounter.
A group of five terrorists was first encountered by a couple, Ganesh Dass, and his wife in Dolka forest near Saniyal village in Hiranagar sector on March 23.
“We are chasing the remaining three to four terrorists who escaped the encounters and are on the run. We are confident of tracking and neutralizing them soon,” said the SSP.
He said a tight security grid is in place in the district, from the border villages to hinterland, leading to the successful operations against the terrorists.
“The encounters exposed their traditional (infiltration) route… We will not allow them to use this route again,” Saxena said.
“Recoveries of arms, ammunition including IEDs and items of daily use indicates that they were in for a long haul,” said the SSP.
The officer further said that recovery of heroin indicated that they were consuming drugs.
“Civil population helped us a lot and are providing immediate information which helped us to make an assessment about the terrorists on the run and are accordingly planning our operations to neutralize them,” he said.
On local support to terrorists, he said 30 people have been identified and booked under Public Safety Act (PSA) in the district so far.
Among the material seized from the terrorists include two AK assault rifles, one M4 carbine, grenades, and sophisticated gadgets for navigation, clothes, sleeping bags, Pakistani made medicines, beverages and food items.
