India, Pak forces trade heavy fire, schools shut

JAMMU: Heavy overnight exchange of fire, including shelling, continued for the fourth consecutive day between Indian and Pakistani troops along the international border in Arnia sub-sector of RS Pura sector in Jammu.

BSF DIG Dharmendra Pareek said Pakistani Rangers began “unprovoked firing” at around 9pm on Sunday, and later resorted to mortar shelling, prompting Indian forces to retaliate. The duel lasted till 5.30am, he said, adding nobody was killed or injured in the exchange of fire.

All schools within 5km of the border in Arnia were shut on Monday. The exchange of fire began on the intervening night of Thursday and Friday when a sniper bullet killed constable Brijendra Bahadur Singh. One Ratna Devi died and five others were injured. Dozens of livestock were either killed or injured, while houses were damaged.

While the PDP-BJP government in J&K has promised to construct 4,000 community bunkers and 20,000 individual bunkers along the border, villagers, including children, remain a sitting duck for the Pakistani firing.

Pakistan Army’s publicity wing Inter Services Public Relations posted on its website that the director general of Pakistan Rangers (Punjab) visited the working boundary at Phokhlian sector where unprovoked ceasefire violation by Indian troops martyred two innocent civilians.