Soldier, policeman killed in Pulwama
SRINAGAR: An Army jawan and a policeman were killed in an encounter with militants in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district on Tuesday, a day after three Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists were killed in neighbouring Shopian.
Officials said that the gunfight started after a joint party of security forces cordoned off the Zantrag Khrew area of Awantipora in Pulwama after receiving information about the presence of terrorists there. The militants opened fire on the forces shortly after, triggering an exchange of fire, they added.
“A policeman and an Army jawan have died in the encounter. The operation is still going on,” said Atul Kumar Goel, deputy inspector general of police, south Kashmir.
The identities of the security men have not been released officially.
According to government officials, the slain policeman is a special police officer(spo) from Rajouri district.
Locals and eyewitnesses suspect the militants might have escaped. “Security forces have been conducting searches for some time, but there has been no exchange of fire now,” said a resident.
This is the fifth encounter between militants and security forces in Kashmir this year.
Three local Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists, including a commander and a former cop involved in a major weapons’ heist in 2018,were killed in an encounter with security forces in south Kashmir’s Shopian district on Monday. A local Hizbul terrorist was killed in an encounter with security forces in central Kashmir’s Budgam district on January 14.
On January 12, three Hizbul terrorists were killed in a gun battle with security forces in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district. One of the slain terrorists was commander Umer Fayaz Lone, alias Hamad Khan,a resident of Tral in south Kashmir.
In the first encounter of 2020, a young man from south Kashmir who joined a militant group earlier in the year was killed in an encounter with security forces in Awantipora on January 7.
Shahid Ahmad, believed to be in his late teens, was killed in Chursi area of south Kashmir’s Awantipora after a brief shootout .
ON SRINAGAR VISIT, NAQVI PROMISES DEVELOPMENT FOR ALL
Union minister for minority affairs Mukthar Abbas Naqvi said on Tuesday that every student in Jammu and Kashmir applying for a scholarship will be given one this year as the government focuses on development in the region after bifurcating the state into Union territories and scrapping constitutional provisions that gave the state special status .
After the changes, effected in August, restrictions on communication and movement have been imposed across many parts of the Kashmir Valley and several political leaders, detained. Some of the restrictions have since been eased partially.
Naqvi’s visit is part of an outreach programme that involves visits by several central ministers to the region — to both assess the situation and to tell people what is being or can be done for them.
Over the next five days, a group of five Union ministers will participate in eight programmes in three districts of the Valley — Srinagar, Ganderbal and Baramulla — meet public delegations, and launch a series of development projects.
On Tuesday, amid tight security, Naqvi arrived at Harwan, inaugurated a bridge and addressed people assembled there to receive him. A number of them flagged issues regarding the development of their respective areas with the minister.