The Centre’s intelligence agencies have warned the home ministry in a report that militant groups operating in the Kashmir Valley have once again managed to build a “formidable network of support systems” in and around Srinagar that could facilitate further terrorist attacks.
The report assumes significance in the backdrop of Tuesday’s attack on an Army convoy in which eight soldiers were killed at Bemina, on the outskirts of Srinagar. Importantly, the report sayd this “network of support systems” played a critical role in one of the worst terror attacks on the security forces ever since militancy erupted in the Valley over two decades ago.
“Following preliminary investigations into the incident it is clear the militants who attacked the Army convoy were provided a safe hideout before and after the attack. They were not only given logistical support but also provided with information about the movement of the security forces. This is only possible if terrorist organisations have a strong local support network close to the place of attack,” the report adds.
Highly-placed home ministry sources said the security forces will soon launch massive operations in and around Srinagar to identify and flush out those giving logistical help to subversive elements. It is believed that following the sharp drop in levels of militancy in the Valley the security forces had been able to break the network of terror outfits in and around Srinagar.
But senior intelligence and security officials now admit they went terribly wrong in their assessments and underestimated the support base of terror outfits as has been revealed by the Bemina incident. “If we don’t start an immediate crackdown on these local supporters, there could be bigger incidents in future,” a senior intelligence official said.
What is also worrying the security forces are credible reports that a large number of militants were planning to sneak into the Kashmir Valley from the Poonch sector. Patrolling and deployment of forces in this region has already been intensified as recent intelligence inputs suggest that militant outfits want to intensify pressure on the forces after the Bemina attack. For this, the militant outfits have asked for reinforcements, both in men and ammunition, from their handlers across the border.