Feb 14: In a stepped-up anti-terror drive, police in Doda district have put up posters at several strategic locations seeking information on active terrorists, including a Pakistani commander of the banned outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad, identified as Saifullah, officials said on Saturday.
The move comes amid heightened security operations across the high-altitude areas of the Jammu region following recent encounters and intelligence inputs about terrorist presence.
Posters were seen at key checkpoints and public places, including Nagri, Dessa, Ganpat Bridge at the Doda entry point, and Thathri, officials said, adding that more notices are being displayed in other vulnerable areas to maximise public outreach.
Meanwhile, security forces discovered a terrorist hideout in Chilli Forest in the Gandoh area of Doda on Saturday morning, recovering eatables and blankets, suggesting recent activity in the area. This has prompted intensified combing operations in surrounding forests.
The posters, featuring photographs and brief details of the suspects, urge the public to share any credible information with the police, assuring complete confidentiality and protection for informants, officials said.
The campaign is part of intensified efforts to dismantle terror networks operating in the Chenab Valley, including Doda and neighbouring Kishtwar districts, which have seen a series of encounters in recent years after militants attempted to revive activities in areas largely cleared of terrorism.
A massive search operation has been underway in the higher reaches of Doda, Kishtwar, Kathua, Udhampur, Rajouri, and Poonch districts over the past month, resulting in nearly a dozen encounters — mostly in Kishtwar, Udhampur, and Kathua — and the killing of four Pakistani JeM terrorists and an army soldier.
While two terrorists were killed in an encounter in the Ramnagar forest area of Udhampur and another in Chatroo, Kishtwar on February 4, one terrorist was gunned down at Parhetar, Kathua on January 23. An army paratrooper also lost his life in a gunfight in Chatroo on January 18.
Officials said search operations, particularly in Thathri and Gandoh areas of Doda, have been intensified after locals reported suspicious movement of individuals believed to be terrorists who may have escaped recent cordon-and-search operations in Kishtwar and moved toward adjoining forest belts. (Agencies)
