Three terrorists killed in ongoing operation in J&K’s Udhampur district (Ld)

Jammu, Sep 11 (IANS) Three terrorists were killed on Wednesday in a gunfight with security forces in the upper reaches of Basantgarh in J&K’s Udhampur district.

Officials said footage of the area captured by drones shows three bodies lying there.

Security forces and J&K Police earlier received a tip-off about the presence of terrorists in the Basantgarh area following which they launched an operation.

“When the security forces reached closer to the hiding terrorists, they opened fire, triggering an encounter. The bodies of the three slain terrorists have not been recovered so far as the search parties came under fire from the surviving terrorists. Reinforcements have been rushed to the area," an official said.

Security forces are maintaining a heightened vigil and aerial platforms are being utilised to provide over-watch.

Notably, eight Assembly segments spread across Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban districts in the Chenab Valley, along with 16 seats in the south Kashmir districts of Anantnag, Pulwama, Shopian and Kulgam, are going to the polls in the first phase of Assembly elections on September 18.

Jammu, Kathua and Samba districts will vote in the second and third phases on September 25 and October 1.

The hilly districts of Poonch, Rajouri, Doda, Kathua, Reasi and Udhampur in the Jammu division have witnessed terrorist ambush against the Army, security forces and civilians over the past two months.

After receiving reports that a group of hardcore foreign terrorists, believed to be 40 to 50 in number, are responsible for these attacks, the Army deployed over 4,000 trained soldiers drawn from the elite Para Commandos and those trained in mountain warfare inside the densely forested areas of these districts.

The terrorists used element of surprise to carry out ambush attacks before disappearing in the forests of these hilly areas.

However, the deployment of Army and CRPF, together with the strengthening of the Village Defence Committees (VDCs) managed by the locals, has deprived the terrorists of using the element of surprise to carry out attacks in recent times.

After the security forces started aggressively going after the terrorists both in the Jammu division and the Kashmir Valley, the terrorists are now increasingly being engaged in exchange of fire.

“They either get killed during such encounters or remain on the run. This prevents them from surprising the security forces by carrying out sly attacks," a senior police officer said.

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