BSF foils intrusion bid near Bamiyal

Ravi Dhaliwal

Bamiyal (Pathankot), Nov 26

Two Pakistan-based intruders rushed back to safety after BSF jawans fired upon them late last night. The incident took place near the Paharipur border check post located near the International Border (IB).

The movement of two persons was spotted by hand-held thermal imaging cameras. “We fired seven rounds. They could have been hunting migratory birds. On several earlier occasions, ornithologists have come near the International Border (IB) but return when challenged. Last night, a thick blanket of fog had enveloped the area. We got suspicious because normally militants take advantage of adverse weather conditions to sneak into Indian territory,” said a BSF officer.

The BSF DIG (Gurdaspur sector), Prabhakar Joshi, reached the spot and immediately ordered a search operation. Paharipur is 30 km from Pathankot city.

When the Pathankot police got information about the incident, the SSP, Harkamal Preet Singh Khakh, dispatched a DSP-rank officer to the site. DGP Gaurav Yadav, too, was kept in the loop.

At the IB, jawans have been equipped with hand-held thermal cameras. This device allows jawans to see areas through smoke or darkness.

Bamiyal is considered to be a favoured spot by infiltrators. On the intervening night of December 31, 2015, and January 1, 2016, four Jaish-e-Mohammad militants entered Indian territory through this spot. A day later, they laid siege to the Pathankot Air Force station. NSG commandos had to be airlifted from New Delhi to deal with the situation. The terrorists were neutralised after a prolonged 36-hour long gun battle.

Six months before that, on July 27, 2015, three Lashkar-e-Taiba insurgents captured the Dinanagar police station. The Punjab Police’s SWAT team was called in following which the militants were killed after a daylong gun battle in which a SP rank officer, Baljeet Singh, lost his life. Intelligence officials say these insurgents had made their way into the Indian side from Bamiyal. It turned out to be a difficult day for the security agencies.

Around the same time, the Bamiyal episode was taking place, the BSF grounded a drone in Amritsar district near Daoke village. The entire area was cordoned off and a search operation was ordered. Nothing incriminating was found.

Later, officers admitted yet another drone was seen, the second one in Amritsar district in one day, but it flew back after some rounds were fired at it.

Militants take advantage of fog

A thick blanket of fog had enveloped the area. We got suspicious because normally militants take advantage of adverse weather conditions to sneak into Indian territory. — A BSF officer, Paharipur border check post