Srinagar: A massive search operation was launched by the Army, on Saturday, to check whether any infiltrators had managed to sneak into the Keran sector in north Kashmir after alert troops foiled an infiltration bid.
Soldiers on patrol noticed movement near Jamgund village, close to the Line of Control (LoC) around 3 am, officials said. The soldiers opened fire, following which there was a brief encounter with the terrorists.
Later, the Army extended the search operation into the nearby forest to determine whether any infiltrators had managed to enter the Keran Valley, as reported by Hindustan Times.
While more troops have joined the operation, the Army has not issued any statement on the infiltration attempt so far.
While there have been fewer infiltration attempts from the LOC in the Keran sector over the last two years, it is an old infiltration route for terrorists.
Security forces had busted a terrorist hideout in the Handwara forest area in the Kupwara district earlier this month. An AK-47 rifle, three grenades and ammunition, had been recovered.
“Based on a specific input, a joint team of the police, along with Army and CRPF personnel, conducted a search operation in the forest area of Nagda Nar, Handwara,” a police spokesperson said.
During the search operation, the team detected and destroyed an old hideout and recovered arms and ammunition, he said.
“The recoveries included an AK-47 rifle, three grenades, 857 AK rounds, 192 PIKA rounds, eight AK magazines, a silencer, 83 pistol rounds and other incriminating material,” the spokesperson said.
The security forces had, in November last year, recovered a huge haul of weapons in the Handwara-Nowgam Sector, including M4 rifles, thereby foiling a potential terror plot in the Valley.
“Based on a specific input, a joint operation was launched by the Handwara police and Naugam brigade of the Indian Army in the Neeriyan Forest area along the LoC in the Nowgam sector. During the operation, the joint team busted a major hideout, which led to the recovery of arms and ammunition,” the police spokesman said at the time, adding that recovered weapons included two M-series rifles with four magazines, two Chinese pistols with three magazines, two hand grenades and some live rounds.
“An FIR has been registered at Qalamabad police station, and further investigation is underway,” he said.