Recruitment of local youth into terrorism in J-K down by 40 per cent: Govt to RS

Recruitment of local youth into terrorist groups in Jammu and Kashmir is down by 40 per cent, while infiltration from across the border has been reduced by 43 per cent, Union Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy said on Wednesday.

Replying to a written question in the Rajya Sabha, Reddy said the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed an improvement in the first half of this year over the corresponding period of 2018.

"Net infiltration has reduced by 43 per cent and local recruitment has declined by 40 per cent. Terrorist-initiated incidents have declined by 28 per cent. Actions initiated by the security forces witnessed an increase of 59 per cent and have resulted in 22 per cent increase in neutralisation of terrorists," he said.

The minister said the government has adopted a policy of zero tolerance towards terrorism and has taken various measures such as strengthening of the security apparatus and strict enforcement of the law against anti-national activities.