25-30 feet snow this winter has damaged fencing in parts of Gulmarg, Nowgam, Kupwara, Keran Machil, Gurez sectors
›
The repair of fencing is a regular process, especially after winter. This year, due to heavy snowfall at many places, the fences got damaged. Army officer
GUREZ: As snow in the higher reaches has started melting, the army with the help of porters has started replacing and repairing the double fencing (normal fence and smart fence).
The record of 25-30 feet snow, the highest since 2006, along the Line of Control in north Kashmir this year led to the damage to the fencing in Gulmarg, Nowgam, Kupwara, Keran Machil and Gurez sectors.
Gurez, which is one of the most-used routes among infiltrators, and Tulali Valley, the remotest area of Jammu and Kahsmir, has porters fixing the fence. The second layer of the smart fencing has been completed here.
“The smart fencing is more durable than the fencing which was in place earlier. The repair of fencing is a regular process especially after the winters. This year, due to heavy snowfall at many places, the fences got damaged,” said a young army officer, who has spent around seven months at a forward post overlooking the Baktoor Valley.
“We even repaired the poles which were used during winters to move from one post to another by tying ropes,” he added.
NO ENCOUNTER NEAR LOC IN GUREZ There has been only one encounter in north Kashmir’s Uri sector, close to LoC, in the first six months when a foreign militant was killed in Boniyar sector. Officials, however, said the militant was active in south Kashmir and wasn’t a new infiltrator. Officials, however, are investigating whether he had been near the LoC to receive the fresh group of infiltrators or not.
Union minister of state for home Nityanand Rai in response to a question in Lok Sabha on Wednesday had said that the net infiltration across the border has reduced by 43% after a surgical strike on terror camps in Pakistan.
Army officials manning the Line of Control told Hindustan Times that militants made attempts to sneak into the Valley many times.
“We spotted the militants in the PoK near LoC. We didn’t let them enter our area,” said an officer posted on the LoC in Gurez. “This winter, there was very heavy snowfall in the region which started in October and continued till April but we didn’t lower the guard.”
Officials and locals said no encounter took place on the LoC in Gurez but few militant groups have managed to sneak into the Valley from north Kashmir. “It’s very difficult to have zero infiltration,” officials said.