India celebrates R'Day; blasts in Manipur

Unfurling of the national flag and vibrant parades today marked the Republic Day across the country, but the celebrations were marred in Manipur where suspected militants triggered four powerful bomb explosions.
However, none was injured in the blasts in different places in and around Imphal. Six major insurgent outfits in Manipur had given a call to boycott the Republic Day celebrations.
Two bombs exploded in the capital complex near the deputy commissioner's officer when the march past was on at around 8.25 AM at the centrally located Kangla, while two other explosions were reported from Chingmeirong and Chingamakha on the outskirts of the city at around 11 AM.

In Jammu, Governor N N Vohra hoisted the tricolour at Maulana Azad Stadium, saying security forces should continue to maintain a close vigil without lowering their guard till a peaceful environment emerged in Jammu and Kashmir.
He asked Pakistan to maintain calm along the border and said repeated ceasefire violations and cross-border infiltration have yet again disrupted normalcy in the state.
"Needless to say, till a peaceful environment emerges our security forces shall continue to enforce eternal vigil along the frontiers without lowering their guard," Vohra said.

"The repeated breach of the ceasefire agreement and continuing attempts at infiltration across the International Border and the Line of Control in the past year have yet again disrupted normalcy and caused varied problems for our people who live in villages along the border," he said.

Vohra hoped Pakistan will "respond positively" to the peace initiatives which have recently been taken by India.
Meanwhile, Pakistani troops violated the ceasefire along the Line of Control in Kashmir this morning by resorting to unprovoked firing for three hours.
"Today morning at 6:15 AM, when it was dark, there was unprovoked firing from Pakistani side. They fired about three rocket-propelled grenades and small arms on to the Kaman post (in Uri sector) on the Indian side," GoC of 19 Infantry Division Major General Anil Chauhan said in Srinagar.
There was no casualty in the ceasefire violation, the first in Kashmir since the DGMO-level talks between India and Pakistan last month.