Pakistan beaming rogue telecom signals to aid terror networks, penetrate jails in J&K: Officials

Recent infiltration patterns indicate there has been a significant surge in telecom towers erected along the Line of Control (LoC) in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

Srinagar/Jammu: Pakistan is actively violating international telecommunication norms by deliberately beaming superfluous cellular signals across the border into Jammu and Kashmir aimed at providing a covert communication lifeline to terrorist groups operating in the Union territory, with a sharp focus on the Jammu region, officials said on Sunday.

Recent infiltration patterns, particularly in the south of the Pir Panjal range, indicate there has been a significant surge in telecom towers erected along the Line of Control (LoC) in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) whose signals reach various Jammu jails where hardcore terrorists are lodged.

While the mountains of the Kashmir Valley naturally block most of these rogue signals, the flat topography of the Jammu plains allows the frequencies to penetrate deep into Indian territory.

Signal traces have been detected in border districts, including Kathua, Rajouri and Poonch, and as far inland as the highly sensitive Kot Balwal jail area in Jammu, the officials said.

The officials said that jammers used at present in some prisons in the terror-hit region have been unable to block the signals and choke illicit communication by inmates as smuggled mobile devices reportedly continued to function inside blanketed prison zones.

There are 14 jails in Jammu and Kashmir, besides two correctional homes.

The officials said that since Jammu and Kashmir has a hyper-sensitive threat environment, further complicated by cross-border signals, drone-assisted devices and shifting telecom spectra, there was a need to install next-generation facility rather than traditional, static jammers that risk compromising security while cutting off nearby civilian communities.

The officials said that the new technology is designed to pinpoint and neutralise active rogue devices within specific zones.

In 2019-20, the security agencies had focused on rogue communication networks from across the border and successfully dismantled them after cracking the encryption, the officials said, adding that the present attempts will meet a similar fate.

The officials said that the strategic placement of telecom towers by Pakistan along the International Border and Line of Control violates Article 45 of the Constitution of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a United Nations body which mandates that all 193 member states take necessary steps to prevent the transmission of false, misleading or superfluous signals, and actively cooperate in locating unauthorised stations.

The ITU's Radiocommunication Bureau has previously reiterated that such transmissions are strictly forbidden.

These installed towers utilise Code-Division Multiple Access (CDMA) technology, featuring high-grade encryption developed by a Chinese firm specifically tailored for YSMS operations.

Because CDMA allows multiple signals to occupy a single transmission channel, it severely complicates real-time electronic monitoring by security agencies.

The officials said that terror outfits are leveraging YSMS services, an advanced technology that merges smartphones with radio sets to facilitate encrypted, off-grid communication.

The rogue telecom network allows a PoK-based handler to stay in constant touch with both an infiltrating group and its local reception party in Jammu, specifically to evade interception by the Army and the Border Security Force guarding the front lines.