Army rushes more troops as Pakistan intensifies cross-border shelling in Jammu & Kashmir

TNN | Aug 23, 2014, 10.59PM IST

A woman displays a mortar shell allegedly fired on a residential area from the Pakistan side of the border in Ranbir Singh Pura region, about 35km from Jammu, on August 23, 2014. (AP photo)

NEW DELHI/JAMMU: ​The Indian Army has rushed more troops towards the line of control and the international border as Pakistani troops have intensified cross-border shelling in Jammu & Kashmir, Times Now reported. The report also said senior generals are also visiting the area to oversee the redeployment of troops in affected areas.

Earlier on Saturday, defence minister Arun Jaitley said ceasefire violations by Pakistan in Jammu & Kashmir across the international border (IB) and the line of control (LoC) have increased in recent months.

He also said Indian forces are responding effectively to protect the country's interests. According to Times Now, there have been over 20 ceasefire violations in the past two weeks.

Talking to reporters in Visakhapatnam at the commissioning function of antisubmarine warfare corvette INS Kamorta into the Navy, Jaitley said, "This is a fact that of late, these ceasefire violations by Pakistan have increased. But let everybody be assured that both our Army and BSF, who are respectively guarding the line of control and the international border, are fully vigilant."

Arun Jaitley says India is effectively responding to ceasefire violations by Pakistan.

"They effectively respond to each violation and I have full faith and the country must have full faith that they are effectively protecting both our territory and national interest," he added.

His comments come on a day when Pakistani troops indulged in heavy "unprovoked" shelling and firing on 22 border outposts and 13 villages, killing two civilians and injuring six others including a Border Security force jawan along the international border in Jammu sector.

Ceasefire violation by Pakistan kills 2 civilians

The BSF said Pakistan Rangers opened a heavy round of fire in the early hours of Saturday morning and targeted at least 22 Border Security Forces posts in Arnia and RS Pura sector in Jammu district.


Villagers gather near the bodies of those killed in cross-border firing by Pakistani troops at Jeiora village in the RS Pura sector near Jammu, on August 23, 2014. (AFP photo)

"Pakistan Rangers resorted to heavy mortar shelling and firing of automatic weaponry on at least 22 border outposts (BoPs) and also civilian areas along IB in Arnia and Ranbir Singh Pura sub-sectors of Jammu district from 12.30am (0030hrs) hours today (Saturday). Initially, the BSF observed restrain but later heavy firing prompted retaliation using similar calibre of arsenal and exchange of fire lasted till 7am (0700hrs)," a BSF official said.

"The fire from heavy to medium machine gun and mortar shelling injured six people including one BSF constable while a father and his minor son died when a mortar shell exploded on the roof of their hutment in Jora farm locality near the India-Pakistan Border, the BSF official added.

The deceased have been identified namely as Akram Hussain, s/o Shah Din and his minor son Aslam, while three other family members namely Kari Bibi mother of Akram, Bibi, w/o Akarm and son Yunus, 3, were injured when a Pakistani shell exploded inside their house at Jora farm, official sources said adding, "One BSF constable namely Shri Krishan, s/o Hem Singh of Uttrakhand presently posted with 192 BSF bn also sustained bullet injuries."

The injured were rushed to Government Medical College & Hospital (GMC&H) Jammu where they are being treated.


An injured BSF jawan is treated at the Government Medical College & Hospital in Jammu after heavy firing from the Pakistan side in RS Pura sector, on August 23, 2014. (PTI photo) 

This was the heaviest unprovoked and indiscriminate firing and shelling by Pakistan Rangers this year along the IB in Jammu frontier in violation of the ceasefire agreement November 2003. Prior to this, Pakistan also violated the ceasefire on August 17/18 in Arnia Subsector and RS Pura Sector along the IB in Jammu targeting at least 20 Indian posts by heavy firing using small arms, automatics and mortars in which a civilian got injured while two houses damaged and two cattle were killed and six injured in Trewa village of Arnia.

Heavy Pakistan firing at forward posts and civilian areas along International Border has triggered panic among the people living there and Saturday's shelling left people adversely affected in forward villages of Sia, Jora farm, Treva, Nikowal, Abdullian, Korotana, Korotana Khurd, Vidhipur and Vidhipur Jattan.

When contacted, divisional commissioner, Jammu, Shant Manu said, "People from three/four villages numbering thousands have been shifted to safer places while many of the youth and males preferred to live at their respective places."


Kali Bibi (centre), 40, a villager who was injured during cross-border firing by Pakistani troops at the RS Pura sector, is tended to by relatives while recuperating at the Government Medical College & Hospital in Jammu, on August 23, 2014. (AFP photo)

He said they (people) have been evacuated by the district administration in view of their safety and were housed in safe shelters and government buildings identified by the district administration to protect civilians from Pakistani firing as a part of the contingency plan.

He also added that the administration and police official were camping in RS Pura and have made arrangements for accommodating the border villagers.

Fear of cross-border tunnel near LoC?

The Indian Army found a secret tunnel dug about 50 metres in the forward area of Chakla along Munawar Tawi in Pallanwalla sector of Jammu district after land caved in during the recent heavy rain in the area.

Sources said the tunnel was found some 50 metres inside the Indian side cutting across the border from Pakistan and it was detected during routine patrolling. Sources, however, added that the Army has cordoned off the area and even has not allowed senior police officials there.


A village woman points at holes made allegedly by gunfire from the Pakistan side of the border at Jora Farm village, in Ranbir Singh Pura region, about 35km from Jammu, on August 23, 2014. (AP photo)

However, Army authorities denied reports about the tunnel saying that no such tunnel was detected. "It was an ordinary ditch along (Bundh) the embankment, which had been washed away due to recent flash floods," they added.

Meanwhile, sources said, "This seems to be the new strategy adopted by Pakistan for facilitating the infiltration of militants because of alert troops along the LoC and IB successfully thwarting infiltration bids by intruders."

This is not the first instance that such a secret tunnel was exposed in the forward areas of Jammu region. A couple of years back, a tunnel dug about 500 metres inside the Indian territory from Pakistan was detected in Chichwal of Hiranagar sector.

On May 4, this year, the Border Security Force (BSF) authorities handed over a protest note to Pakistan Rangers over the tunnel issue which was detected in Samba District, near the International Border (IB), which is the latest alignment point of the 400-metre-long cross-border tunnel which was found in July 2012.

Past tunnels 

A caved-in portion of a 3X3 tunnel in Chillyari border belt in Samba District was found 23 metres away, inside Indian territory, from pillar number 170 on "Zero Line" at the international border when BSF took up clearing of the thick and tall bushes along the Zero-line.

This was believed to be the latest alignment point of the 400-metre-long cross-border tunnel which was found along the International Border in 2012.

Pertinent to mention here is the fact that a joint team of Geological Survey of India and BSF, during excavation, had unearthed total length of about 540 metres of tunnel, dug into the Indian side, cutting across Pakistan from the Zero Line on August 8, 2012.

This secret tunnel hit the media limelight after a local farmer detected it on the evening of July 27, 2012, while working in his field at Chichwal when he saw the land sunk at three straight points due to monsoon rains.


A soldier keeps watch near a hydropower project near the LoC at Uri in Jammu & Kashmir.

Before this, the Army had also detected a secret tunnel in August 4, 2009, when heavy rain led to caving in of this tunnel along the LoC in Pallanwala sector of Akhnoor.

This tunnel in J&K was believed to aid the infiltration of militants and the transport of ammunition from across the border and was intersecting the vicinity of Pakistan's Mango Post and the PP2 Post on the Indian side. The existence of the tunnel was discovered when interrogating a Lashkar terrorist captured from Kupwara.

If recalled, the commander of 16 Corps, Lieutenant General KH Singh had recently stated that about 150 to 200 militants were planning to infiltrate into the Indian territory from the LoC.