Jammu: Pak troops shell hamlets along border, 1 BSF officer, 6 civilians injured

Jammu: An officer from the Border Security Force and six civilians were injured in heavy firing by Pakistani troops along the International Border in Jammu and Kashmir's RS Pura sector on Thursday.

The heavy shelling, which continued overnight, resulted in closure of schools in the area. The authorities have asked people to move to safer areas.

"Assistant Sub Inspector of BSF AK Upadhayay was injured when a shell exploded near him in RS Pura sector. He received splinter injures in his hand," a BSF spokesman said.

He said the BSF gave a "befitting reply" to the firing by Pakistan Rangers.

Jammu Deputy Commissioner Simrandeep Singh said Pakistani troops last night also targeted civilian areas including Sai Kalan, Bure Jaal, Treva and Arnia.

"Shelling started in Sai Kalan also. Arnia also came under shelling from 0130 hours. People were inside their houses, so no human casualty," he said.

"At 2035 hours, Pakistani troops from two posts started firing flat trajectory weapons in the areas of RS Pura," Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of BSF, Jammu Frontier, Dharmendra Pareek said.

He said Pakistani side was targeting Indian posts and civilian areas with heavy mortar and small arms fire. The BSF was effectively retaliating and the firefight was going on, Mr Pareek said.

Pakistan also resorted to heavy mortar shelling in the Arnia town of the district.

"Heavy mortar shelling has started at Arnia also," Simrandeep Singh said.

The BSF has informed the Union home ministry that it has destroyed 27 posts and 18 watchtowers of the Pakistani Rangers in the last few days in retaliation to the constant ceasefire violations. The BSF has also stated that it has killed as many as seven Pak Rangers and injured several of them, including a senior officer of the rank of Lt. Colonel.

Amid unprecedented ceasefire violations and heavy firing by Pakistani Rangers along the border in the northern sector, one of the first things that home minister Rajnath Singh did on return from his three-day Bahrain visit on Wednesday was to have a detailed security review meeting with senior officials on the prevailing situation along the border. These details were shared by the BSF during the high-level meeting with the home minister.

The BSF also informed the home minister that heavy firing by the Pak Rangers was largely due to two main factors. Firstly, the Pakistani security forces are trying hard to push in large number of militants waiting close to the border before winter sets in and are primarily providing cover fire for this. Secondly, the Pak Rangers are retaliating to India’s surgical strikes and even the killing of seven of its personnel last week by BSF.