Tackling militancy spillover

At present, only gujjars reside in the sesitive Padri Gulli area in J&K. (Right) An ITBP post operating from a gujjar kotha. 

By Pratibha Chauhan

CERTAIN areas in the Kehar, Tissa and Kiari sectors of Chamba district are barely a few hours walking distance from Bhaderwah, Kishtwar and Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir, making it easy for the militants, mainly foreign mercenaries, to infiltrate into Himachal Pradesh. Moreover, due to the presence of less security in the border areas, militants take refuge in the higher reaches of Chamba whenever pressure is mounted on them in Jammu and Kashmir.

The Himachal Government began to take the threat of militancy seriously only after the gruesome massacre of 35 labourers in Kalaban and Satrundi in Tissa subdivision on the night of August 2, 1998. A cache of ammunition found hidden in the Sappa Cholu nullah in Kehar sector, further confirmed the use of the border areas of Chamba by militants from the neighbouring state.

In the early nineties, stray incidents of militant attacks took place in Chamba. During two separate encounters, two police personnel and one militant was killed in the border area of Chamba. It was the carnage of 35 persons that made everyone realise that Himachal too figured in the area of operation of the insurgents, and more so since it is a soft target.

It was only after the massacre that the Central Government took note of the spillover of militancy into Himachal. Coming to the rescue of the state, it provided funds, though far less than what was required for procuring sophisticated arms and ammunition.

At present, 10 battalions of the state police and four of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) are guarding the border between Chamba and J and K. Though the Himachal Police is trying to deliver its best in extremely harsh conditions, it is not trained in mountain warfare and in tackling insurgency. Now some of the police personnel in the Pangi area are still armed with the obsolete 303 rifles, and are expected to face the harsh winters without the requisite warm clothing and shoes.

It is not fair to expect our men to take on the six-foot-tall, well-built, ISI-trained foreign mercenaries, equipped with automatic weapons, in high altitudes, as they are just not trained for the stupendous task," opines a senior police officer. The better facilities provided to ITBP personnel in the very same areas has a further demoralising effect on the Himachal Police, as they both perform the same task under similar conditions.

"The shoes provided to us do not last even three months, while the parkas (warm jackets) given to us are of inferior quality, making it difficult for us to bear the biting cold, when there is over 10 feet of snow here," stated one of the police constable in the Langera police post. The police wants the government to provide free ration to all those deployed in the border areas so that their diet intake is as good as that of the ITBP men. "If this is not possible at the moment, at least a diet allowance should be given to us," demands the state police.

The last ITBP post at Khundi Mural, at a height of 10,200 feet, is shifted to Bhandal during the winter months. The Company Commander of the three posts of the 15th Battalion of the ITBP at Sontith, Banga Got and Gullu Ki Mandi, says that survival in the area covered by 10 feet of snow is difficult. Though at a number of places pre-fabricated huts have been provided, but some of the posts still continue to function from the kothas of gujjars in the higher reaches.

"Despite facing numerous hardships, the HP Police deployed in the border areas is doing an excellent job, and no militancy-related incident has taken place," contests K.C. Sadyal, DIG, Southern Range. He goes on to add that 75 per cent of the border area, including the sensitive parts of Kalaban and Satrundi in the Tissa sector, is being manned by the police.

To prevent any local help to the militants, the Himachal Government has banned the entry of gujjars in the higher reaches of the border areas, for the last two years. Even the locals who were issued licences by the Forest Department to collect herbs from there, have not been allowed to enter the area.

At present, only the gujjars from J and K who have been issued licences by the authorities in Doda are residing in their kothas at Padri Gulli. The area between Bhaderwah and Khundi Mural in Himachal, is almost a no-man’s land as there is no habitation there, making it ideal for militants to take refuge.

The family of Mir Baksh, a gujjar from Nagri Khandial village, near Kathua, is occupying its kotha at Padri Gulli. Owning about 300 buffaloes, they go to Bhaderwah every third day to sell paneer (cottage cheese). "We come here in the month of July and return by September-end to our home in Kathua," says Mir Baksh.

Falling in J and K, Padri Gulli has only five kothas and a small masjid. Remains of a resthouse of the J and K Forest Department, gutted by militants, is a testimony to the tourist flow to the place, in times of peace. Bhaderwah town in Doda district is about four hours’ walking distance from Padri Gulli. The area is guarded by ITBP forces on the Himachal side.

Despite confirmed reports of J and K militants using the higher reaches of Chamba for their activities, Himachal is yet to receive adequate help from the Centre to prevent the spread of militancy in the state.

Former Additional Director General of Police Subhash Malik opines that the police has been aware of the threat of militancy since the early nineties, but the concern voiced by it to the state government and the Centre was never taken seriously.

With intelligence agencies indicating that the ISI plans to extend its activities to Himachal, the state government will have to tackle the matter seriously. The hand of the militant outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba was confirmed in the Kalban-Satrundi massacre. In other stray incidents, militants belonging to the Hizbul Mujahideen have been arrested from Kangra district.

Moreover, the mushrooming of madarsas in the districts of Chamba, Kangra and Una, has made the police and other intelligence agencies sit up. The problem of insurgency can be tackled effectively with professionally trained forces, equipped with modern arms and adequate funds at their disposal.