12 civilians injured in Pulwama grenade attack

At least a dozen civilians were injured when militants lobbed a grenade on security forces in the Kakapora area of south Kashmir's Pulwama district on Wednesday evening.

A police official said the militants lobbed a grenade on a joint team of J&K police and paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in Kakapora, Pulwama, 26 kms from Srinagar.

However, the grenade missed the intended target and exploded on the road injuring 12 civilians, he said. The injured have been shifted to hospital and the area has been cordoned off to nab the militants.

There has been a spurt in grenade attack cases in Kashmir in recent months and what is worrisome for the security forces is that these attacks are coming up at a time when they are already on a high alert. The latest attack comes at a time when J&K is gearing up for first-ever district development council polls scheduled to begin from November 28.

Official sources said that the Union Home Ministry has ordered the deployment of 49 additional battalions of CRPF in J&K to ensure violence-free polls. They said the deployments are being moved from various states to J&K and concerned quarters have been asked to make the arrangements including the desired scale of arms and ammunition, special anti-riot equipment and winter clothing.