An inspector from CRPF’s 187th battalion was killed in a terrorist attack in a remote forest of Udhampur district on Monday, bringing the total number of security force fatalities in J&K to 18 since May, with 14 in Jammu region and an additional four in Kashmir.
According to officials, the inspector was fatally shot when terrorists hiding in the forests of Chill in Dudu-Basantgarh area fired at a joint patrol of CRPF and J&K police.
“The area has been cordoned off and a search operation is under way to track down the terrorists,” said an official.
Earlier fatalities in Jammu zone included a Captain of 48 Rashtriya Rifles in Doda district on Aug 14, a soldier in Poonch on July 23, a Captain and three soldiers from 10 Rashtriya Rifles in Doda on July 15, and the five soldiers from 22 Garhwal Rifles on July 8. A CRPF constable was killed in Kathua on June 12, and Corporal Vikky Pahade died in an ambush on an IAF convoy in Poonch on May 4.
In Kashmir, two soldiers were killed in Anantnag on Aug 10, and two others died in separate gunfights in Kupwara on July 24 and 27. Security has been intensified in the mountainous interior following EC’s announcement of assembly elections in J&K after a decade-long gap - in three phases from Sept 18 to Oct 1.
Dudu-Basantgarh is situated about 65 km from Ramnagar town and shares its borders with Bhaderwah and Marmat in Doda district to the east, and Basoli Billawar in Kathua district to the southeast. The region falls on a key axis connecting Kathua, Udhampur, and Doda, which has been a conduit for terrorists entering Kashmir valley. The dense vegetation in the upper reaches of these districts provides natural cover for terrorists.
The recent surge in violence in Jammu region has been attributed to “highly trained intruders” from Pakistan, who are working in small, mobile groups of three to four terrorists. Officials said terrorists have shifted their tactics from suicide attacks to a “hit-and-run” guerilla strategy, engaging in jungle warfare. This change in strategy has proved fatal for security forces in several instances. Armed with sophisticated weapons such as M4 carbines and armour-piercing bullets, these groups are also using advanced tech, including iridium satellite phones and thermal imaging devices.
