The Army jawan who was wounded in an ongoing fire exchange between joint security forces and militants in the Dudu Basantgarh region, on the border of Jammu and Kashmir's Doda and Udhampur districts, died on Saturday.
Joint forces had launched the anti-terror operation in the higher reaches of Dudu Basantgarh following specific intelligence inputs about the presence of terrorists in the area.
The official said the soldier was injured in the early stages of the exchange of fire and has since died. His name cannot be published yet until official procedures are carried out. Authorities added that his sacrifice highlights the continued difficulties of security personnel in counter-militancy operations in challenging hilly terrain.
Initial reports show two to three militants are still stuck in the ongoing encounter. More reinforcements were sent in and forces were maintaining strict cordons to avoid any escape.
Doda and the surrounding areas have seen heightened security operations in the past few weeks following the increased terrorist activity at the higher reaches.
"Encounter is underway. Joint forces of SOG, police and Indian Army on ground," Jammu IGP said in an X post.
Earlier this year, on June 26, a terrorist Haider, a top commander of Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), was eliminated in an encounter within the Dudu-Basantgarh forest. He was operating in the region for the last four years. On April 25, an Army jawan was also martyred in a gunfight with terrorists hiding in the Basantgarh area.
Elsewhere in Jammu and Kashmir, anti-terrorist operations also continued on Saturday. Contact was made with terrorists in an intelligence-based operation in Kishtwar district. The White Knight Corps headquartered in Nagrota reported, "Contact with Terrorists. In an Intelligence-based operation in the general area of Kishtwar, alert troops of #WhiteKnightCorps established contact with terrorists at about 8 P.M. on 19 Sep 25. Exchange of fire occurred. Operations are ongoing now."
In Poonch district, combined forces recovered war-like stocks of weapons and ammunition. The White Knight Corps mentioned in another Tweet on X, "#JointOperation | Recovery of War-Like Stores. Vigilant #WhiteKnightCorps soldiers, conducting an intelligence-based joint search operation with #JKP, recovered one weapon (AK Series), four AK mags, 20 Hand Grenades and other war-like stores in Poonch Sector. #SearchOperation underway."
Combined forces in Jammu and Kashmir have been carrying out aggressive operations against terrorists, their overground workers (OGWs) and sympathisers. Drug peddlers and smugglers have also been targeted by intelligence agencies, as the proceeds from hawala money rackets and drug peddling are considered to be funding terrorist operations in the Union Territory.
The new strategy of the joint forces is to disintegrate the entire terror network in Jammu and Kashmir, taking aim at terrorists, OGWs, sympathizers, and miltancy-supporting financial networks. Intelligence agencies have traced most drug smuggling and hawala operations back over the Line of Control (LoC) and the International Border (IB).
Jammu and Kashmir has a 240 km-long International Border running through Jammu, Kathua, and Samba districts, and the LoC runs 740 km long through Baramulla, Kupwara, and Bandipora in the Valley and Poonch and Rajouri in the Jammu division. The BSF is tasked with securing the International Border, and the Army defends the LoC.
Read also| Tejas Mk1A to Be Equipped with Meteor, World’s Longest Air-to-Air Missile: HAL Chief
Read also| In addition to AMCA, Safran proposes to produce engines for Tejas MK 2 Also: Report
