The surge in terror in the Rajouri-Poonch area calls for a closer study and concerted action by the security establishment.
The terror attack in Rajouri on Wednesday in which five Army personnel including two officers were killed is a chilling reminder of Pakistan-backed terrorists gaining a foothold in the Jammu region.
The incident fits a pattern of all major terror strikes in Jammu and Kashmir in the last two years: These have taken place in the Rajouri-Poonch-Reasi belt situated to the south of the Pir Panjal mountain range that separates Jammu from the Kashmir Valley.
A cause of alarm is that terrorists have managed to inflict casualties on the Army which has lost 14 personnel in five major terror incidents this year alone. This includes two back-to-back ambushes on April 20 and May 5 that claimed the lives of 10 soldiers.
The 46 deaths reported in a string of terror-related incidents from Rajouri and Poonch since January this year underscores yet again the new security challenge beyond the Valley where, in contrast, terrorist strikes have seen a dip in the last two years or so.
Security personnel at the site of the encounter in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district on Wednesday.
