Over 300 pc increase in cross-border firing led to max BSF deaths at J-K IB this year

There has been over 300 per cent increase in the incidents of cross-border firing along the India-Pakistan border in Jammu and Kashmir this year so far, leading to maximum deaths and injuries to BSF personnel in the last five years, an official data said.

According to the data accessed by PTI, over 300 unprovoked firing incidents have taken place this year till now, leading to the killing of five Border Security Force (BSF) personnel and injuring 34 of their colleagues who were deployed along the frontier areas of the international border in Jammu region.

In comparison to this, a total of 111 unprovoked cross-border firing instances took place last year along this front while the figures were 204 incidents (in 2016), 350 (in 2015) and 127 during 2014.

Two personnel of the border guarding force were killed and seven injured due to sniping and mortar shelling last year while three BSF personnel were killed and 10 injured in such incidents in 2016.

Similarly, a BSF jawan was killed and five were injured in 2015 and two of its men were killed while 14 were injured in 2014 at this border front in Jammu and Kashmir.

The BSF had launched three special operations -- Rustam (2016), Arjun (2017) and Bheem (2019)-- as part of the government mandated 'befitting reply' policy for retaliation of such firing incidents.

The latest spell of these incidents began when Pakistan Rangers and their other units started shelling areas along the IB from May 15 and till now 11 people including 9 civilians and 2 jawans have been killed and over 60 people, including over 48 civilians injured.

The guns were relatively silent today along the IB in Jammu after nine days, a senior official said.