A year after Uri attack: Army on high alert, anticipating terror strike

A year since the Uri attack, Indian Army anticipates another major terror strike on one of its establishments in Jammu and Kashmir, as Pakistan-backed terrorists stepped up their activities in the northern state.
 
Army's own intelligence suggests activities in 17 terror launch pads across the line of control and presence of nearly 250 terrorists in the state.

But what compounded the worries of the Army top brass of late is the whereabouts of nine JeM terrorists who went missing after being on the radar of the security agencies for some time.
 
A dozen of these Jaish-e-Mohammed men infiltrated into Jammu and Kashmir valley earlier this month.

Three of these suicide attackers (fidayeen) were killed when they attacked a Jammu and Kashmir police establishment, but the rest fanned out in the hinterland.
 
Intelligence reports suggested the militants split into the group of three each and were hiding in Kulgam, Shopian and Pulwama, according to the sources in the Army.
 
Anxious about the prolonged lull period, the local Army commanders and JCOs in Jammu and Kashmir have been asked to further strengthen their intelligence network in order to secure advanced information about any such possible attempts.
 
The last one year was the bloodiest in the recent history of Jammu and Kashmir with 178 terrorists and 69 Indian Army soldiers dying since the cross-border surgical strike.
 
While the number of ceasefire violation was 228 in 2016, the number of unprovoked firing from across the border already touched 444 by mid-September.

In fact, almost 60% of last year's 228 ceasefire violations happened after the September 29 operation by the Indian Army on terror camps across the border.
 
After the strike, the camps were strengthened and according to an internal government assessment, these camps now harbour nearly 400 terrorists.
 
The anti-terrorist grid has been put on high alert in the northern state after the nine ultras went missing.

The Army has deployed two additional battalions on National Highway-44 passing through south Kashmir, but officials admit that security forces were vulnerable in the hinterland.