Indian Military

CHENNAI: Amid a raging debate on dilution of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act and its partial withdrawal from Kashmir, Army Chief Gen V K Singh said the AFSPA was an "enabling provision" and not "arbitrary".

The army has given its views on the issue and the government will take the "correct decision", he said.

Gen Singh, who was here to review the Passing Out Parade at the Officers Training Academy, also said there have been more infiltration attempts into Jammu and Kashmir in the last two months and did not rule out "some methods" in Pakistan trying to exploit the unrest in the border state.

To questions by reporters on the demand for diluting the AFSPA, Gen Singh said it was "an enabling provision, not arbitrary".

"I think the government will take a correct decision on what is to be done about it," he said.

To repeated queries on the issue, he said, "You all know that the Supreme Court has very clearly said that provisions of AFSPA are neither arbitrary nor against the Constitution.

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: 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.

SRINAGAR: The army Sunday foiled a major infiltration bid by separatist guerrillas in north Kashmir's Uri sector, killing six of the intruders, defence sources said here. The gunfight was continuing late Sunday night.

"A major infiltration bid was foiled by the alert army troops in Uri sector of the LOC (Line of Control). A group of heavily armed infiltrators crossed over to this side of the LOC after which they were challenged and asked to surrender," the sources said.

"The infiltrators opened fire at the troops, triggering a fierce encounter that is still going on in the area," the sources said around 11 pm

According to the sources, six intruders have so far been killed but their identity would only be established after the operation ends in the mountainous area.