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5 terror camps wiped out in PoK
Jammu, October 9
At least five terrorist training camps operating in PoK have got devastated due to the massive earthquake that rocked the area yesterday.

Army , IAF step up rescue operations
Jammu, October 9
The Army and the Air Force today continued round-the-clock rescue and relief operation, evacuating 250 injured persons accessing the remote quake-devastated areas in Jammu and Kashmir, close to the Line of Control (LoC).

Mediapersons beaten up
Uri, October 9
Mediapersons had to face the wrath of people of the border area here today. Several vehicles were damaged and a few journalists beaten for not visiting their villages also hit by the devastating earthquake yesterday.

Vaishno Devi shrine safe
Jammu, October 9
No damage has been caused to Vaishno Devi shrine due the massive earthquake that wreaked havoc in Jammu and Kashmir yesterday and the yatra is continuing uninterrupted, officials said here today.

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5 terror camps wiped out in PoK
S.P. Sharma
Tribune News Service

Jammu, October 9
At least five terrorist training camps operating in PoK have got devastated due to the massive earthquake that rocked the area yesterday.

Sources said the camps were located around Muzaffarabad, capital of the PoK and the epicentre of the quake.

Reports said the worst hit were terror camps at Chakothi, Muzaffarabad, Kahuta and Bagh. These camps were equipped with ultra modern gadgets and arms to train terrorists for Kashmir.

The camps at Muzaffarabad and Chakothi, that have been infiltrating terrorists to the Tangdhar and Uri areas of the valley, respectively, have reportedly been completely wiped off. The camps at Kotli and Nikial have also been damaged.

Pakistan had so far not accepted the demand of India to shut the nearly 85 terrorist training camps that the ISI was operating along the LoC.

Meanwhile, the death toll due to the quake in Jammu and Kashmir has touched 600 as about 280 bodies have been recovered in the Tangdhar area of the valley by teams of the Army that have fanned out in remote areas for relief and rescue operations.

Reports of widespread devastation started pouring in as troops and men of the IAF reached far-flung places. About 480 bodies of civilians and 50 soldiers were recovered in the Tangdhar and Uri sectors. About 3,000 houses were damaged in the Tangdhar area.

The Army has launched Operation Imdad for quake victims. The Army is providing relief at Uri, Baramula, Naogaon, Tangdhar and Poonch. Troops have also established medical camps in quake-hit areas and IAF choppers are undertaking sorties to rush medicine and relief equipment.

Meanwhile, the CII has decided to constitute a task force for the victims.

The state BJP chief, Dr Nirmal Singh, and the NCP president, Thakur Randhir Singh, have mourned the death of a large number of people due to the quake and have urged the state government to provide relief to the victims.

	Army , IAF step up rescue operations Jammu, October 9 The Army and the Air Force today continued round-the-clock rescue and relief operation, evacuating 250 injured persons accessing the remote quake-devastated areas in Jammu and Kashmir, close to the Line of Control (LoC). Two MI-17 helicopters of the IAF formed an airbridge between the worst-affected Uri and Kupwara region and the Corps Headquarters in Srinagar and another MI-17 and some smaller Chetak helicopters were ferrying the injured from Tangdhar — another worst-affected area in north Kashmir. Army officials said some areas on the border in the Karnah sector reported heavy devastation. The authorities feared that casualty figures for both Army and civilians could be heavy as the region was very close to the quake epicentre, Muzaffarabad, the capital of PoK. About 32 to 40 personnel of the Border Roads Organisation have also reported to have been buried by a huge landslide on the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad Highway between Uri and Aman Setu. — PTI
	Mediapersons beaten up Uri, October 9 Mediapersons had to face the wrath of people of the border area here today. Several vehicles were damaged and a few journalists beaten for not visiting their villages also hit by the devastating earthquake yesterday. As soon as the cavalcade of mediapersons reached Mohra, the agitated people stopped it and asked the journalists to visit their villages which were completely destroyed by the quake. “Media hai hai (down with media)...down with ministers and the state administrataion,’’ the people shouted, refusing to allow the vehicles carrying the mediapersons to move towards the Uri town where Congress President and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi was scheduled to visit the affected families and assess the damage. The protesters claimed that their villages were ignored by the media. — UNI
	Vaishno Devi shrine safe Jammu, October 9 No damage has been caused to Vaishno Devi shrine due the massive earthquake that wreaked havoc in Jammu and Kashmir yesterday and the yatra is continuing uninterrupted, officials said here today. The shrine, which is thronged by nearly 40,000 devotees daily during the ongoing Navratras, was untouched by the quake, the Additional Chief Executive Officer (ACEO) of Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, Mr Puneet Kumar, said. There were no casualties either in the base camp of Katra or along the 13-km hilly track leading to the cave shrine located in Trikuta mountains, he said. “The cave shrine and over 100 odd structures, hotels and pilgrims survived the nature’s fury,” he said, adding that the pilgrimage was continuing smoothly. — PTI
	8 intruders among 16 killed in quake-hit J&K Srinagar, October 9 Sixteen persons, including eight Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) infiltrators and a self-styled district commander of the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, were killed in Jammu and Kashmir since last evening, an official spokesman said today. Troops foiled an infiltration bid when they gunned down eight LeT infiltrators near the Line of Control (LoC) at Jamia Galli Gulmarg this morning, the spokesman said, adding a soldier was also killed while two others were injured in the gun-battle. Security forces killed another LeT militant in an encounter at Dangiwacha in the north Kashmir district of Baramula last night. An AK rifle, four magazines, four hand grenades and 80 rounds were seized from the slain ultra. Three militants, including a self-styled district commander of the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, were gunned down by the security forces during a search operation late last night at Sayan village under the Kokernag police station. An AK rifle, five magazines, two pistols, one hand grenade, 108 rounds were seized from the slain ultra. Two charred bodies of militants along with two AK rifles, five magazines and 19 rounds were recovered from the debris of the Janwari Complex at Sopore where security forces and ultras were locked in a gunfight on Friday, the spokesman said. Militants kidnapped and later killed Mohammad Yousuf at Bansal Mahore in the Udhampur district last night, he said. — UNI
	IEDs detected on road to Srinagar Tribune News Service Jammu, October 9 The Army today foiled a major attempt of terrorists to strike the vital Jammu-Srinagar highway, which is the only road link of the country with the Kashmir valley, when it detected two improvised explosive devices (IEDs) of 5 kg each near Batote early this morning. A spokesman of the Army said in addition to these two deadly IEDs, the Army also intercepted a truck that was carrying 100 kg of RDX for being delivered to a terrorist at Qazigund. A patrol of the Army came across two IEDs and the bomb disposal squad was immediately swung into action to destroy these explosives. In another incident, the Army intelligence unit got information that a truck (JK02T 9845) was to cross Batote around 9 am with 100 kg of RDX. Army sleuths intercepted the truck and arrested its driver, Bahar Ahmd Malik and co-driver Iqbal. During interrogation, they said the RDX concealed in four tins was given to them by a Mulla in Delhi for being delivered to Ghulam Ahmed Rather at Qazigund. The timely detection of the IEDs and RDX has saved the road link from damage at a time when vehicles carrying relief to the earthquake areas of the valley and other parts of the state were plying on the road.
	Gujjar panel chief laments raw deal to community Our Correspondent Jammu, October 9 While appreciating the on going confidence building measures initiated by India and Pakistan, the Gujjar and Bakerwal Advisory Board, led by Haji Buland Khan, has demanded “suitable measures’ for ensuring a hassle free interaction among the people living on either side of the LOC in Jammu and Kashmir. In a communication sent to the UPA Chairperson, Ms Sonia Gandhi, the Gujjar leader called for steps which could lead to the reopening of Suchetgarh-Sialkot, Nowshehra-Mirpur, Poonch-Kotli-Rawalakot, Kargil-Skardu roads on the plea that the reopening of Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road had not served the purpose of people living in the Jammu region. Haji Bulan Khan asked Ms Gandhi to intervene so that the restoration work on Poonch-Uri road was taken up. He said that out of the 35-km road stretch 28 km stretch was on the other side of the LOC which required an agreement between Delhi and Islamabad. He said that if the road link was restored to traffic people belonging to Poonch and Rajouri could also reach Srinagar in a few hours because it could shorten the distance by 450 to 550 km. In memorandum Haji Buland Khan told Ms Sonia Gandhi about the “raw deal” being given to the Gujjar and Bakerwal ethnic groups despite the fact that the group constituted 25 per cent of the total population of 1 crore in Jammu and Kashmir. He wanted the AICC President to ask the government to reserve seats in the state Legislature, the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha because the Gujjar and Bakerwal community had been granted a Scheduled Tribe status in 1991. He said that it was strange that Scheduled Castes had seven reserved seats in the Assembly when its total population was just about four lakh. The memorandum also demanded raising of Gujjar and Bakerwal regiment in the Army and special recruitment in the paramilitary forces for the ethnic group. Mr Buland Khan criticised the state authorities and those engaged in carrying out census on the plea that proper enumeration of the people belonging to the Gujjar and Bakerwal community had never been undertaken. He requested Ms Gandhi to prevail upon the agencies concerned for carrying out fresh census in Jammu and Kashmir. He also sought the Government of India’s assistance for rehabilitation of Gujjars and Bakerwals who continue to lead a miserable life in shanties and huts.