Srinagar, Oct 3: Even as Shalbato Jamagund encounter in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district entered 10th day Thursday, there is a significant amount of confusion prevailing in Army as to whether the men hiding in the area are militants or Pakistani soldiers. There has been intermittent exchange of firing in the area on Thursday while choppers were pressed into service for surveillance, reports said. “There is lot of confusion about who the fighters are. Recovery of body or any document could clear the air,” a senior Army officer told Greater Kashmir, requesting not to be identified. “Around two infantry units of Army are involved in the operation.” The Corps Commander of Army’s 15 Crops Lt Gen Gurmit Singh had Wednesday maintained that it would be premature to say whether the Pakistan Army was involved in infiltration or not. However, he had said, that there were “definite indications that some special troops” were part of the group fighting Army for the past 10 days, including Thursday. The officer said that militants infiltrate in groups comprising five to eight. “Here the number is from 35 to 40,” he claimed, adding that for the past 10 days they are giving “stiff resistance” to Army. “Lot of movement has been observed in the area and troopers are tackling the situation with utmost care,” the officer said, adding that the operation is being monitored on hourly basis. The official said there has been fresh exchange of fire on Thursday morning but there was no causality. “The firing between two sides took place early in the morning and it continued for some time,” he said, adding that fresh reinforcement was moved to the area Thursday night as assistance to the already-deployed troops. “Troopers of 268 and 68 Mountain Brigades are involved in the operation,” he said, adding that the area where the exchange of fire is taking place is the jurisdiction of Farkinya-based 268 Mountain Brigade. “The troopers of 68 are mostly in outer cordon,” he said. The official said choppers were pressed for surveillance while Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UHVs) are continuously bringing the images from the ground. “The choppers used for surveillance take their flights from Chowkibal,” he said, adding that earlier elite paratroopers were deployed through choppers in the area to fight militants. An Army spokesman Lt Col NC Vij told Greater Kashmir that the operation is on and the terrain is very difficult. “Intermittent firing is going on in the area. There is no new causality but during the past nine days, five soldiers have received minor injuries,” he said.
Posted on: Fri, 04 Oct 2013 05:21:49 +0000
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