Five suspected Pakistan militants were killed when a landmine exploded along the Line of Control in the Battal sector of Poonch district, Jammu and Kashmir, on February 7.
The infiltration bid was attempted from PoK when one of the militants, while crossing the Line of Control, accidentally stepped over a landmine laid on this side. Sources said the militants were also carrying an IED that exploded due to the impact thereby killing them on the spot.
The Indian Army has laid landmines in a very strategic manner along the LoC to check the infiltration bids by terrorists. In Jammu and Kashmir, these mines play a very crucial role in bolstering security, complementing other measures like night vision technology, electronic surveillance, and human monitoring.
The area is considered as “no man’s land,” which acts more or less as a deterrent factor against infiltration. With less snowfall this season, the security forces and the Indian Army have intensified vigil along the LoC and its periphery, since many mountain routes normally used by terrorists remain passable.
Earlier in the week, Union Home Minister Amit Shah stressed that counter-terror efforts need to be fast-tracked by achieving “zero infiltration” during a security review meeting in the national capital. Shah expressed satisfaction over the sustained effort of the union government to weaken the terrorist ecosystem in Jammu and Kashmir and asked all security agencies to adopt an “offensive” approach against infiltration and terrorist activities.
Shah called for a “ruthless approach” to tackle terrorism and once again set the aim of “wiping out” terrorists from the region. The two-hour meeting debated how to improve coordination among security agencies to meet the goals.
