NEW DELHI, Jan 10: Amid reports of violence in Jammu ahead of Republic Day on January 26, security forces on Saturday recovered a cache of weapons from a forward area near the international border in Jammu’s Samba district. Officials suspect the consignment was dropped by a Pakistani drone.
Sources said the seized cache included two pistols, three magazines, 16 rounds of ammunition and one grenade. The recovery comes amid heightened security arrangements aimed at preventing any attempts to disrupt Republic Day celebrations.
According to officials, the recovery followed inputs about suspicious drone activity from across the border. Acting on the information, a joint team of the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Jammu and Kashmir Police launched a search operation late Friday night in Palura village of Ghagwal.
During the operation, the search team reached the bank of a drain, where they recovered a package wrapped in yellow tape. The packet was opened with the assistance of a bomb disposal squad, leading to the recovery of the weapons.
Sources said Jammu, like several parts of north India, was currently experiencing severe cold and dense fog. These weather conditions are believed to be exploited for infiltration attempts, as well as for dropping weapons via drones to terrorists and their local helpers operating in the region.
Officials noted that a similar drone-based weapons drop was detected on the first day of the New Year. In that incident as well, arms and ammunition sent via drones into the Jammu region were recovered during a search operation by security forces.
(Manas Dasgupta)
