Recovery of RPG launcher jolts security establishments in J&K

The recovery of a shoulder-fired explosive warhead - Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) launcher - has sent shockwaves among the security establishments in Kashmir as the weapon can inflict a lot of casualties.

The use of the deadly weapon, which has the potential to damage even armored vehicles, marks a significant escalation in the region where militants were running short of arms till recently.

The Army recovered the RPG launcher and its two projectiles from the militants, who had attempted to attack a convoy of Border Security Force in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district on Thursday evening. While one of the militants, identified as Usman from Pakistan, was later killed during a gunfight, the other one managed to escape from the security cordon.

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Kashmir police chief Vijay Kumar, said it was after a long time that militants used a RPG. “The recoveries indicate how big a strike the militants were up to,” he said.

The RPG-7 recovered from the Kulgam encounter is a shoulder-fired missile weapon that launches rockets equipped with an explosive warhead. It is after a long time that such a deadly weapon was used by militants to carry out an attack even though few such rusted weapons had been recovered during search operations.

Sources said the recovery of the RPG has further fuelled suspicion that militants in Kashmir indeed have destructive weapons at their disposal -- ringing alarm bells amidst brass corridors. “Security agencies have taken the issue seriously and are gathering information on such an arsenal of militant groups operating in Kashmir,” they said.

The slain militant Usman, according to the police, had infiltrated at least six months ago and was a close associate of Jaish-e-Mohammad top commander Ismail Alvi who was killed last month. “It is most likely that the RPG recovered in Kulgam had been sent from Pakistan in recent months. There is a likelihood that more such deadly weapons may have reached Kashmir already,” sources added.

Former chief of J&K police, Shesh Paul Vaid says the recovery of RPG is “a matter of concern” and needs to be investigated as how these weapons reached Kashmir.