Soldier killed as Army, police resume hunt for terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur

Reinforcements equipped with drones and sniffer dogs were rushed from both Udhampur and Doda sides and a massive search operation was underway when last reports were received, the officials said.

Jammu: An Indian army soldier was killed on Saturday in a gunfight with terrorists along the Doda-Udhampur border in Jammu and Kashmir, where three to four Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) operatives are believed to be trapped.

The encounter broke out in the forested Dudu-Basantgarh heights after the Army and J&K police launched a joint operation on specific intelligence inputs, officials said.

The Army’s White Knights Corps initially reported the contact in Kishtwar, but later clarified that the gunfight was taking place on the Doda-Udhampur border. One soldier, who was injured in the exchange of fire, succumbed at a hospital.

The region has witnessed a string of deadly encounters over the past year. On June 26, security forces killed Haider, a top JeM commander who had operated in the Dudu-Basantgarh forests for nearly four years.

Earlier, on April 25, an Army soldier was killed during a gunfight with terrorists in the same area. Several smaller engagements have also taken place in the Udhampur, Rajouri and Poonch sectors, underlining a persistent militant presence in Jammu’s mountainous districts.

Security officials said the latest gunfight points to continued attempts by Pakistan-based groups to push infiltrated terrorists into the Pir Panjal and Chenab Valley belts of Jammu region, particularly after Operation Sindoor in May hit terror camps across the border.

Once free from militancy, Jammu region has emerged as a major security challenge in the past four years. With the rising presence of battle-hardened terrorists, the government has strengthened the counter-terrorism grid by deploying additional troops and paramilitary.

With local recruitment at a low, the thrust of militancy in the region now rests largely on infiltrated Pakistani cadres, many of them trained Jaish and Lashkar-e-Taiba operatives.

Friday’s encounter was ongoing till evening, with security forces maintaining a tight cordon in the thickly forested terrain, reports said.