M A I N   N E W S

BSF jawan hurt in Pak firing
Ravi Krishnan Khajuria/TNS

Jammu, August 11
Violating ceasefire thrice in the last two days, Pakistani troops today opened fire at forward posts along the international border in Jammu and Kashmir, seriously injuring a BSF jawan. A BSF border guard was injured in sniper fire by the Rangers along the International Border (IB) in Jammu sector. Pakistan Army troops also opened small arms fire in Mendhar sector along the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch district today.

“Around 7.40 am Pakistani Rangers opened two to three rounds of sniper fire critically injuring a BSF border guard constable Pawan Kumar near Alpha Machail border outpost of the BSF in Jammu sector,” said a BSF officer.

The fire hit the border guard in his rib cage. He is in a serious condition, he added

The officer described it a clear case of ceasefire violation. “We retaliated and a small arms fire is on in the area,” he added.

In another ceasefire violation along the LoC, Pakistani Army troops opened small arms fire in Mendhar sector around 11 a.m. “Around 11 a.m. they (Pakistani troops) opened small arms fire in Mendhar sector of Poonch district prompting a calibrated response from Indian Army troops guarding the borderline,” said a senior Army officer.

He said the gun battle was on in the sector, but there are no reports of casualty and injury to our troops so far, he added.

Earlier, a Head Constable Ram Niwas Meena of 200 BSF Battalion, who was injured in sniper firing on Narainpur BoP area in Samba district on August 5, succumbed to injuries at AIIMS, New Delhi. He had suffered a bullet injury in the chest

On July 27, Pakistani Rangers had opened sniper fire critically wounding a BSF border guard Baljeet Singh near Kothe border outpost along the International Border in Hiranagar sub-sector of Samba.

In a major ceasefire violation, Pakistani troops during the intervening night of August 9 and 10 had targeted several Indian posts by firing 7000 rounds of heavy ammunition and mortar shells during a seven-hour firing along the LoC in Poonch district.

On the intervening night of August 5 and 6 Pakistani Border Action Team had killed five Indian troopers in a sneak attack in Chakan-da-Bagh area of Poonch district.