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SRINAGAR: Two army jawans were killed in an encounter with militants during a fresh infiltration bid by the ultras near the Line of Control in Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday night. The encounter, which broke out in Furkian Gali forest at around 7pm, continued late into the night, a defence spokesman said here. SRINAGAR Army Chief VK Singh arrived here on Monday on a two-day visit where he will be briefed about the security situation in the valley, a defence spokesman said. The army chief will be given a presentation by the Srinagar-based 15 Corps commander Lt Gen SA Hasnain on the security situation in the valley, he said. The spokesman said Gen Singh will visit the Line of Control (LOC), where he will interact with the troops. The visit of army chief assumes significance as valley has witnessed two major infiltration attempts by the heavily armed militants this past week, in which four army soldiers, including an officer were killed. Singh will meet the state chief minister Omar Abdullah, the spokesman said, adding that he will also paid visit to Amarnath cave. The army chief is accompanied by his wife Bharti Singh, who is also president of Central Family Welfare Organisation. She will meet the patients at the 92 Base Hospital Badami Bagh cantonment and interact with the families of the soldiers there, he added. SRINAGAR: The Army foiled two infiltration bids by heavily-armed militants on Friday along the Line of Control (LoC) in Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir, a defence spokesman said. The attempts by militants to sneak into the Kashmir Valley from across the border were plugged by troops stationed in Bangus valley and Keran sector, he said. The spokesman said the troops challenged the infiltrating militants who opened fire and returned in the face of retaliation. There was no immediate report of any casualty in the exchange of fire between the two sides, he said, adding that a massive search operation was undertaken to ensure that the militants would not be able to infiltrate into the Valley. This is the eighth infiltration bid foiled by troops in Kupwara district over the past 10 days. Four Army personnel including a Junior Commissioned Officer and five militants were killed in the gun battles following the infiltration bids. NEW DELHI: Foiling a large number of infiltration bids across the Line of Control (LoC), the Indian Army has killed 27 terrorists this year and arrested four in Jammu and Kashmir. Meanwhile, around 40 terrorists succeeded in sneaking past the security forces this year, sources in the Indian Army said here. This year 27 terrorists were killed and four arrested while trying to cross the LoC. Out of the 175 terrorists trying to enter the Indian territory, only 35 to 40 have succeeded, they said. Last year, out of 495 terrorists, who made an attempt to enter J&K, 125 were gunned down by the soldiers deployed in the three-tier counter-insurgency grid. Around 90 terrorists were reported to have succeeded in entering J&K in 2010. In the last three years, maximum number of 10 terrorists were arrested by the Army in 2009, when 480 terrorists tried to cross over the borders. In 2009, 110 terrorists were killed. 10 insurgents were also arrested then, they said. They said they have managed to map all the infiltration routes and launch pads used by the insurgents, which has helped us plug the loopholes, they said. ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI: The Army chopper that strayed into Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and was forced to land by Pakistani military, has been released and has returned to India. The Cheetah helicopter with four officers on board returned to Kargil in Jammu and Kashmir around 6pm, ending an inadvertent intrusion that immediately triggered urgent talks between the two foreign and military establishments. NEW DELHI: Lt Gen Shri Krishna Singh, a veteran Gorkha soldier, today took over as the Army's vice chief and asked the troops to remain vigilant to "stay one step ahead" of militants. SRINAGAR: Three army personnel were killed when they were hit by an avalanche outside their post near the Line of Control (LoC) in north Kashmir, officials said on Monday. The three soldiers, including a junior commissioned officer, were killed at Roshni Post, around 120 kms here, near the LoC in north Kashmir's Baramulla district last night when they were clearing snow outside their post, a police officer said. The bodies of the three victims have been retrieved, he said. The upper reaches of Gulmarg, where the post is located, had witnessed heavy snowfall last week. JAMMU: The Army on Friday lodged a strong protest with Pakistani troops over the ceasefire violation along the Line of Control in Poonch district. "We have lodged a strong protest with our Pakistani counterparts and asked them to refrain from such acts in the future", Army officials said. He said a contact was made with the Pakistani authorities by the army in Poonch and the protest was lodged. Pakistani troops had on Thursday targeted several Indian posts with mortars and rockets and fired indiscriminately along the LoC in Poonch. Armed with heavy guns and rocket launchers, Pakistani troops shelled Kirpan, Kirpan one, Chajja, Kranti, Ghoda, Nangi Tikri, Mandol forward posts along LoC in Krishnaghati sub-sector of Poonch district yesterday triggering panic and fear among people living around the Borderline. Army has also demanded a Flag Meeting at a forward post along LoC to discuss the repeated incidents of ceasefire violations and shelling on Indian posts. New Delhi — The Indian Air Force (IAF) will start the induction of the first batch of Russian Mi-17 V5 helicopters from March 2011 onwards. The 80 Mi-17 choppers were contracted under the $1.34 billion deal which was signed in December 2008. Russia will also have an offset obligation to the tune of $405 million. According to the Indian Defence Minister AK Anthony, the Mi-17 choppers will be utilised for special heliborne operations, air maintenance, and troop and equipment transport as well as search and rescue operations. The Mi-17 choppers will augment the medium-lift capability of the IAF and enable high altitude missions of the IAF. India had signed a deal with Russia two years ago to supply 80 Mi-17s to replace and augment its existing fleet of around 150 Mi-8 and Mi-17 medium-lift choppers. While the first batch of the Mi-17 choppers will be inducted in May 2011, the remaining are likely to be inducted in phased manner in next four years, according to IAF officials. NEW DELHI: Anti- India terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan is intact and currently 42 terror camps, including new ones in Pak-occupied Kashmir, are being run, Army Chief Gen V K Singh disclosed on Thursday. Now even women are being trained to wage Pakistan's proxy war against India, he said in an interview. Gen Singh said infiltration has gone up recently and around 600 terrorists are waiting at "launch pads" in PoK along the Line of Control and international border to sneak into India. Pakistan has "invested heavily in the proxy war against India" and there has been "no substantial effort" by it to act against terror groups which operate from its soil and are used as a "strategic tool" by that country. "Currently, 42 terrorist training camps are located in Pakistan/PoK. Inputs reveal that some new camps have also been established in PoK for undertaking terrorist training," he said. The Army Chief was responding when asked whether Pakistan has done something to dismantle anti-India terror infrastructure as has been promised by it repeatedly. |
