Army commander visits forward areas in J&K’s Doda, Kishtwar

Jammu, Aug 13 (IANS) The General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Northern Command, Lt General M.V. Suchindra Kumar on Tuesday visited the forward areas in J&K’s Doda and Kishtwar districts to review the ongoing anti-terrorist operations.The Army Commander visited the forward areas in the two districts and assessed the deployment of the forces.The commander visited the forward locations of the counter-insurgency Delta Force and interacted with the soldiers, said officials.“Lt Gen MV Suchindra Kumar visited forward locations of Counter Insurgency Force (Delta) in Doda and Kishtwar area to review the ongoing anti-terrorist operations being conducted in light of increased terrorist activity in the region,” the Northern Command said on its X-post page.The Army said that the Commander assessed the options for the deployment of additional forces being inducted into the area and emphasised synergy with the police and para-military forces.”The Army commander exhorted all ranks to maintain a high tempo of operations, ensuring security and safety for ongoing and upcoming events,” the Army said.For the last two months, the hilly districts of the Jammu division have witnessed hit-and-run attacks by terrorists in Poonch, Rajouri, Doda, Kathua, Reasi and Udhampur districts of the Jammu division.Massive searches are on in the area to hunt down the terrorists.An encounter broke out four days back between the security forces and the terrorists in the Gandole Ahlan area of Kokernag in which two soldiers and one civilian were killed. Search operation has been extended to the Kishtwar-Doda axis which is connected with Kokernag through mountain passes.After reports of 40-50 hardcore foreign mercenaries operating in the hilly districts of Jammu division, the Army deployed over 4,000 highly trained soldiers, including elite Para commandos and those trained in mountain warfare, in the mountainous areas of Jammu division.The tactics adopted by the terrorists have been to carry out surprise ambush attacks and then disappear into the densely forested areas.To defeat the tactics of the terrorists, the Army and CRPF have been deployed on mountain tops of these districts.The J&K Police have already released the sketches of some terrorists active in these areas. A reward of Rs 5 lakh each has been announced for anyone giving actionable information about the presence of these terrorists.Police also said that the identity of the informer will be kept secret and there should be no fear in the minds of the people willing to volunteer information. It is believed that the presence of the terrorists in the hilly areas adversely affects the routine life and safety of the families living close to the forest areas where the terrorists are reported to be hiding.–IANSsq/dpb