HM Sushilkumar Shinde reaches Jammu to review border situation amid escalating LoC firings

Amidst spurt in ceasefire violation by Pakistan along the International border, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde reached Jammu on Tuesday to visit the forward areas of the state.

In the wake of escalating border firing, Shinde will not be going to any forward post and confine himself to meeting BSF personnel in Sambha district. Earlier, Shinde was scheduled to visit three forward posts including Parahpur observation post but the plan was dropped after a fresh assessment of the situation by the Union Home Ministry, the sources said.

The decision to keep the Home Minister away from the forward posts was taken in view of continued shelling from across the International Border by Pakistani Rangers for last two days, official sources said.

Notably, less than 24 hours before the arrival of Shinde in Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistani mortar shells started pounding areas in R S Pura and Nicobal areas again on Monday. Firing continuedfor the fourth successive day on Monday, with as many as 25 border outposts on the Indian side being targeted. Border Security Force (BSF) officials said there have been as many as 36 ceasefire violations in the region this month.

The Home Minister will also be holding meeting with BSF personnel in Sambha from where he would fly to Hira Nagar police station area where four people, including a police official, were gunned down on September 26 by terrorists.

The Home Minister is also expected to have a meeting with Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and top security officials of both state and central governments to take stock of the situation along the border.

For the last nearly a week, it has become a routine that Pakistani Rangers start unprovoked firing and mortar shelling on the Indian side after sun set. These continued incidents of ceasefire violation by Pakistan, sources say are aimed at helping terrorists sneak into the Indian territory from across the border.

At present, nearly 300 – 400 terrorists are reportedly camping at launching pads across the border waiting for an opportunity to sneak into the state before the onset of winter.