Anti-infiltration strategy chalked out for Kashmir

Jammu, April 10 (IANS) Jammu and Kashmir Police and the army have chalked out a joint strategy to check militant infiltration into Poonch and Rajouri districts from across the Line of Control (LoC) during summer months, an official said Wednesday.

An army spokesperson said that top officials from the police department, army and intelligence agencies “took stock of the security in the area and chalked out a strategy for the next few months” at a meeting in Rajouri, some 180 km from here.

“There is an urgent need to take precautionary measures as militants are likely to use the Mughal Road to infiltrate with logistics, weapons and funds in the coming months,” Deputy Inspector General of Police of Rajouri-Poonch range Danish Rana said at the meeting.

The Mughal Road connects the border districts of Rajouri and Poonch of the Jammu region to the Kashmir Valley through Shopian district.

The security forces have received intelligence inputs that militants in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) across the Line of Control are planning to infiltrate into the state when mountain passes will become accessible in these two districts in summer months, according to the spokesperson.

It has also been decided to create joint forest posts to monitor annual migration of the Gujjars and Bakarwals. Militants on many occasions have intermingled with these nomadic tribes who migrate along with their cattle to lower areas in the state in winters and to highland pastures in summers.

The officials also discussed the training of village defence committees — groups of village volunteers who are given arms by the government to fight militants in remote areas.

Another important area that came up in the meeting was monitoring the movement of surrendered militants, the spokesperson said.

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