The focus of the terror groups in J&K has shifted from terror-infested Kashmir to the areas of Poonch and Rajouri falling in the Jammu district. Out of seven major terror attacks in the past couple of years, five attacks have taken place in the Jammu area – two in Poonch, one in Sunjawan, and one each in Nagrota, and Rajouri.

Those in the know say “It is a sign of desperation.” “The military and police both have largely been able to curb the terror activities in the Valley and now the terrorists have started focusing on the Jammu region. However, this is a shortsighted exercise on their part and will not pay off,” said retired DGP of Jammu and Kashmir K Rajendra.

Endorsing his point of view is Major General (retd) DS Rana who has served in the Valley. “Kashmir Valley is choc-abloc with security personnel. Also, it is under the direct control of the Centre. As a result, the terrorist group has started focusing on areas south of Pir Panjal which happens to be Jammu and the surrounding areas. Aiding the terrorists with some ease is the increased use of drones for the supply of weapons which has to be addressed. But yes, their focus is the bordering areas of Jammu because the government’s focus has mostly been the Valley.”

While in Punjab the BSF is able to intercept the drones from across the border with success, in the hills of Jammu, the same is not possible due to irregular topography. On 30 November 2016, seven soldiers were killed when terrorists entered a military camp in Nagrota which is part of Jammu division. Similarly, on 10 February 2018, Sunjuwan Army Camp again in Jammu district was attacked in which six soldiers and a civilian were killed.

After this, there was a lull till the Pulwama suicide bomber attack took the lives of 40 CRPF soldiers. In more recent times, first, the Poonch attack took place on 20 April this year in which five soldiers were killed.

On 5 May the Indian army soldiers cordoned off the area in the vicinity of the interconnected caves in the Kandi forests where terrorists behind the Poonch attack were believed to be hiding.
However, when the soldiers closed in on them, the terrorists exploded an IED and followed it up with indiscriminate firing which killed two soldiers on the spot. The total number of soldiers lost in this particular incident is five.

A retired army general, unwilling to be named, said that a convoy or a single moving (military) vehicle is a soft target and easiest to be targeted. And the attack on April 20 happened precisely due to that. Between the year 2021 and now, the security forces have lost about two-and-a-half dozen soldiers in various militant strikes in this region. At the same time, the casualties in Kashmir have drastically come down compared to before Article 370 was repealed.

Sources say, there are sleeper cells on the entire 225-km long border of Poonch and Rajouri, and that is why the terrorists find themselves facilitated in carrying out terrorist activities in the area.

DGP Jammu and Kashmir Dilbagh Singh said: “That support is being provided to the terrorists from across the border. Their modus operandi was to attack the army truck where there was a road bend and the speed of the vehicle was zero.”