42 camps, 2,500 militants in Pak, PoK, claims MHA
Even as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh draws up peace initiatives with Pakistan, Union home minister P. Chidambaram will remind state chief ministers on Monday that terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir remains intact with 42 training camps, with about 2,500 militants, operating across the border. While 17 militant camps are functioning in Pakistan, there are 25 such camps in PoK. It is also estimated that 800-1000 militants are waiting to infiltrate into Jammu and Kashmir, according to the home ministry.
The MHA, in its agenda note circulated to states ahead of the CMs conference on internal security on Monday, also raises alarm over ‘’social networking sites and cyber space’’ being used to ‘’instigate mass protests”.
As many as 12 infiltration attempts have taken place in Jammu and Kashmir till February this year, against 11 such attempts in the state during the corresponding period last year. Government figures peg the number of militants in the Valley to around 350 belonging to Lashkar e Tayyaba, JeM, HuJI. Hizbul Mujahideen and local militants operating with the support of overground workers. The militants communicating on wireless sets are largely talking about fund raising and procurement of arms and ammunition rather than operational details, the MHA has noted.
While terrorist violence in J&K has shown a decline, the sharp rise in security forces killings by the CPI(Maoist) in the hinterland has become a major cause of worry. The current year has begun on a rather ominous note with systematic targeting of security forces by Naxals, the MHA has noted.
As many as 31 security forces have been killed in LWE states till February this year as against 10 personnel killed during the corresponding period last year. The casualties are spread across Jharkhand (179), Orissa (7) and Chhattisgarh (5). Further, against killings of 31 SF personnel this year, only 11 Naxals have been killed.
“This ratio heavily tilted in favour of Naxals, is a cause for worry,” the MHA says. It says a new dimension in the LWE problem is the kidnapping of the two Italians and a BJD MLA in Orissa.
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