The government forces in a joint operation recovered a huge cache of arms, ammunition in the forest area of Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district, officials said Thursday.
Army said in a statement that in a joint operation with the police, they launched an operation on the night of 17 and 18 February “recovered a huge cache of weapons, including warlike stores” in the hinterlands of Reasi district of Jammu region.
“On February 17, late evening, input was received from a reliable source regarding suspicious activity in the remote and dense forests of Makkhidar in Reasi district. These warlike stores were spread over large area in remote uninhabited forests of Makkhidhar forest in Reasi district,” an army spokesman said in a statement issued. “Persistent and coordinated efforts of joint search by army and police duly supported by local intelligence units has led to successfully unearth huge cache of weapons and war like stores.”
The statement said that “militants are in acute shortage of weapons and are desperate to try and disrupt peace and development being embraced by the people of the region after an extremely successful DDC election process”.
“Reasi district has had the highest polling percentage of more than 80 percent during this DDC elections setting a record for the country.”
The statement said that the recovery of weapons comes immediately a few days after the government forces recovered war-like stores on the Jammu bus stand.
“Pakistan is continuously trying to push militants into this side of the border. In past few months the close coordination and synergy between army, police and intelligence agencies have successfully unearthed several caches of war like stores and broken network of Over ground Workers of Pakistan-sponsored militants of Laskar e Taiba and HUM in the hinterlands South of Pir Panjal Ranges.”
The army spokesman while giving the details of the recovery of arms and ammunition said the recovered items include: “AK 47 Rifle- 01, SL Rifle- 01, 303 Bolt Rifle -01, Chinese Pistols-02, Pistol MAG with ammunition. Radio set -02 with antenna, AK 47-1, box sealed- 01, UBGL Grenades- 04.”. (KNO)