he Centre on this day in 2019 had revoked Article 370, which gave special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, and bifurcated it into union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
Just two days ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Jammu and Kashmir, security forces on Friday foiled a suicide attack in Jammu by the banned Jaish-e-Mohammed, eliminating two suspected Pakistani terrorists in an encounter after they fired on a Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) bus and killed an officer.
The body of a junior commissioned officer was retrieved from a stream in the Poshana area of Surankote late Saturday evening, while the body of a second soldier was found this morning as the water level started receding in the district.
Pakistan's political leaders on Friday adopted a resolution against India, condemning the killing of 2 Pakistani soldiers in BSF firing.
Pakistani Army resorted to shelling of mortars besides automatic and small arms firing in forward areas along LoC in Hamirpur and Bhimbher Gali (BG) sub-sectors of Poonch district from 0630 hours, a defence spokesman said.
'90 per cent of India's population is vaccinated; they are immunised. We need not worry.'
Firing mortar shells and using automatic weapons, Pakistani troops targeted civilian areas and forward security posts along the International Border and Line of Control in Jammu, Kathua, Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir.
Stepping up ceasefire violations, Pakistan on Friday resorted to heavy mortar shelling and firing on several BSF posts along the Indo-Pak border in Samba and Kathua districts of Jammu and Kashmir, drawing a strong retaliation from India which killed two Pakistan Rangers.
Pakistani troops resorted to unprovoked and indiscriminate firing amid rocket and mortar shell attacks on Line of Control posts injuring three army jawans and a civilian in Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir.
The security establishment in Jammu and Kashmir was pulled up by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday for the "lapses" in containing the terror attack near Jammu after three terrorists had a free run for nearly an hour between the two strikes.
Two army jawans and a woman were killed while 11 people were injured as Pakistani troops targetted villages and security posts at various places in Jammu and Kashmir since Friday night which triggered migration of hundreds of people from some border areas.
The report published in the gazettes of India appeared in local newspapers on Monday and showed that Habba Kadal seat in Kashmir division and Suchetgarh seat in Jammu province had been restored.
Three civilians were injured as Pakistani troops opened fire and shelled 17 border out posts and hamlets along the International Border in Jammu and Samba districts overnight, resulting in heavy exchanges till the wee hours on Friday.
The cross-border firing has forced many to take shelter in government-run camps.
A curfew was on Sunday clamped in three more districts of Udhampur, Samba and Kathua in Jammu region and army staged flag marches as tension prevailed following outbreak of communal violence in Kishtwar on Friday that left two persons dead and scores of others injured.
Rajni Bala, a government school teacher who was killed by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district, was cremated in Samba on Wednesday, amid an outpouring of grief and anger.
This classification of districts is to be followed by states and union terrotories till a week post May 3, when the second phase of lockdown will end, for containment operations.
Amid a war of words between India and Pakistan over cross-border firing, Pakistan's Defence Minister has alleged that India wants to keep his country busy in a "low-intensity war".
Pakistan Rangers violated ceasefire again by targeting Border Outs Posts with small arms and automatic weapons along International Border in Jammu district, prompting Border Security Force troops to retaliate.
The Congress will make it the main issue when its Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi reaches Jammu and Kashmir early next year.
This is the second major ceasefire violation along the IB this month and came despite Director General Military Operations of the two countries agreeing, on May 29, to implement the ceasefire pact of 2003 in "letter and spirit".
They said a massive search operation has been launched to trace any weapon or explosive that it might have dropped.
However, there has been an appreciable decline in the casualties of civilians and security forces in the terror attacks in the past nearly four years. Against 11 civilian killings from October 27, 2015 to August 4, 2019, there was a 63 per cent decrease with seven civilian killings reported post the abrogation of Article 370.
An army jawan was killed on Tuesday night when Pakistani troops opened fire at Indian forward posts in Balakote sub-sector along the Line of Control in Poonch district in what is stated to be the second ceasefire violation of the day and the eighth in less than a week.
Pakistan army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa had said last month that a peaceful resolution of disputes, including Kashmir, would be possible through talks between the two countries.
A private school teacher in Rajasthan's Udaipur was arrested on Wednesday while three engineering students from Kashmir were held in Agra in Uttar Pradesh for posting messages on WhatsApp celebrating Pakistan's victory over India in the T20 World Cup cricket match three days ago.
Singh paid tributes to soldiers killed in the Kargil War at a memorial in Dras sector.
Two Army officers and five soldiers lost their lives in a major terrorist attack on Tuesday at an army base near Jammu in the town of Nagrota, just 20 kilometres from the border with Pakistan.
Rohingyas settled in Jammu tells how they are facing a battle for survival
The cross-border firing was severely affecting the mental health of those residing in border areas that witness death and destruction.
The security setup along the highway is on high alertness and checkings have been intensified as a measure to foil any design of anti-national elements, they said.
Blood splattered compounds, smashed window panes and demolished roofs are all that are left of houses in border hamlets which have been battered in Pakistani firing and shelling in the last three days.
A 150 metre-long tunnel, which was recently discovered near a forward post along the Indo-Pak border in Jammu region's sensitive Pallanwala sector, was apparently aimed at infiltrating terrorists, Defence spokesperson said in Jammu on Tuesday.
Over 40,000 villagers decided to leave their home along the India-Pakistan border
An emotional farewell was given to the valiant army jawans who lost their lives in the Uri attack, as their last rites were performed in their respective native villages with full military and state honours.
Over 40 people died in rain-related incidents, majority of them in Uttar Pradesh, while incessant rainfall in Bihar left the streets of state capital Patna and other areas waterlogged and residences of at least two ministers marooned.
Pakistan should control terrorism if it wants peace and reconciliation, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Sayeed said.
Following the arrest of a top terrorist who had made a video of National Security Advisor Ajit Doval's office, it has come to light that Pakistan-based terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad is planning a strike in Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir police chief Dilbag Singh said on Sunday.
'We are caught between the devil and the deep blue sea'
The prime minister said the country would give befitting response to every terrorist.
