Army downplays violence in J&K, calls it media's wishful

The Army today downplayed the recent incidents of violence and reports of youths joining militancy, especially in south Kashmir, stating that the situation was largely stable and the media was just indulging in wishful thinking.
"There is a situation (but) largely it is quite stable. But because of certain amount of media magnification that is taking place, and what is emerging on the social media, a notion is getting created... It is getting hyped much beyond what it is actually," General Officer Commanding (GOC)of the Srinagar-based Chinar Corps Lt Gen Subrata Saha, said here.
The army commander said the militancy-related violence in south Kashmir is down contrary to media perceptions.

"If you see it from the point of view of any parameters like incidents related to terrorism, kinds of loses that happen, strictly speaking in terms of (those) parameters, all the indicators are down," he said.
Lt Gen Saha was commenting on the recent attacks in south Kashmir where, according to reports, a large number of youths have joined militancy. As per the reports, young militants have been luring other youths by posting photographs and videos in army fatigue on social networking sites.
On the situation along the Line of Control (LoC), the Army commander said the soldiers deployed there are ready for any challenge.

"There have been no such incidents (ceasefire violations) on the LoC in Kashmir Valley. But the soldiers deployed are ready for any such challenge. There was an incident in Machil sector (in north Kashmir) but they are irritants at the local level. It did not last long and got sorted out itself," he said.

Lt Gen Saha said, "the ceasefire violations (in Jammu region) are linked with infiltration. It has happened many times but as far as Kashmir Valley is concerned, we haven't seen such a trend".
Earlier, the corps commander also received a motor-cycle expedition 'Sair-e-Milap' that traveled from Poonch in Jammu region to Zojilla in Kashmir Valley.

The aim of the expedition was to spread the message of peace and brotherhood between the two distinct regions of the state.
"The expedition is a very good initiative because if more such expeditions come here, then people will get a feel of the situation here and can tell others. It carries a huge significance as it increases the interaction and the understanding between the people," the army commander added.