The prolonged anti-militancy operation in the Akhal forest area of south Kashmir’s Kulgam district was officially called off on Tuesday, bringing to an end 12 days of one of the longest counter-terror operations in recent years.
The hunt for terrorists hiding in the forest area of Kulgam district of Jammu Kashmir entered its final stages on Wednesday, the 13th day of the operation.An official said that the decision to end the operation was taken after security forces, despite an exhaustive search through dense alpine forests and rugged terrain, found no fresh contact with the militants believed to have been hiding in the area.“After continuous search and combing for nearly two weeks, and with no further movement detected, the operation was concluded this morning,” he said.
Two Army soldiers have been killed and nine injured since the operation began on August 1 in the Akhal forest area.Two terrorists have also been killed in the encounter.The identities and group affiliation of the slain terrorists have not been revealed so far.“The Akhal operation has entered the final stages,” Inspector General of Police, Kashmir, V K Birdi, told reporters on the sidelines of the full dress rehearsal for the Independence Day celebrations at the Bakshi Stadium here.
He said the details of the operation will be shared in due course of time.This is the longest anti-terror operation in the Kashmir Valley in recent years.Birdi said the full dress rehearsal and security drill ahead of Independence Day were concluded successfully.“The main programme takes place in Srinagar city, where VVIP takes salute. For that, Srinagar police has made multi-tier arrangements along with CAPFs. High-rise spotters are also in place and proper security arrangements have been made,” the officer said.
The encounter began on August 1 after specific intelligence inputs suggested the presence of at least two to three heavily armed militants in the higher reaches of Kulgam. The initial contact led to a gunfight that spread over several days.Two Army soldiers—Pritpal Singh and Harminder Singh—were killed, while at least ten others sustained injuries. One local militant was also killed in the initial exchange of fire. Sources said it appears the remaining militants managed to break the cordon.
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