Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, Aug 19: General Officer Commanding (GOC) 15 Corps, Lt General Subrata Saha, today said that Army has strengthened counter-infiltration grid along the Line of Control (LoC) to ensure zero infiltration this year.
Speaking at a function in Tangmarg area of Baramulla district, the GOC said: “We have made our counter-infiltration grid much more robust. First of all, it has evolved over the years and secondly, we have made some changes this year.”
Lt General Saha said that intelligence coordination and surveillance has been improved this year. “We have improved the coordination with regard to intelligence. The surveillance grid has also been made pretty deft and smartened enough to be sure that we do not miss anything”, he added.
The Corps Commander said this year Army has added more tiers to the counter infiltration grid making it robust. “Also, we have made some changes in the troop deployment – to put added tiers, to take advantage where the terrain is offering. So far, it is working very well. By all estimates, it has been zero infiltration and I hope it works like that. And actually it is the hard work of the soldiers on the ground.”
The GOC said there has been an increase in the intensity of infiltration attempts from across the LoC this year. “There is an increase in the intensity of infiltration attempts. Since May 27 till now, there have been 11 attempts. 19 terrorists have been eliminated trying to infiltrate. And apart from that the number of reconnaissance also is quite a bit,” he said.
Lt General Saha said though militants using social media, to encourage youth to join their ranks, is a new dimension, there hasn’t been an abrupt increase in their numbers. “This social media picture is a new dimension. It gets picked by electronic media from where print media picks it up and in that process it is getting a spin, a hype much more than the reality. People had said that the recruitment would increase because of this, but nothing like that has happened. The figures are similar to last year,” he said.
The GOC said that many youth had joined the militant ranks but some of them returned which was a positive sign. “In 2015, till now, as per our reports, the recruitment is somewhere between 30-40. It is almost comparable to 2014 when 64 youngsters were recruited. But then it is much higher than 2012 and 2013. So, it is certainly an area of concern. While I agree and highlight (recruitments have taken place), equally important is the fact that as many as 38 boys, who had joined, have also come back. And that coming back is, I think, a very positive sign,” he said.
The Corps Commander credited the parents of such youth for their return. “Their parents are informing us almost immediately when their child goes missing. A lot of credit goes to Jammu and Kashmir Police which is working very hard on this and whatever help they need from the Army, we are also rendering,” he said.
Lt General Saha said that any youth joining militancy is a cause of concern and it is collective responsibility of all the agencies to provide them opportunities to engage them. “Obviously, all the agencies have to be conscious of it and it is a collective responsibility for us to be sure that correct opportunities are provided to the youth, whether it is in terms of education, employment, empowerment and engagement for the positive orientation. The talent that is there in Kashmir is phenomenal. All that is required is opportunity,” he said.
The GOC said the only way we are going to keep people away from this so-called glamorization is to firstly keep them very nicely engaged and highlighted the Army’s efforts in engaging the youth. “In 2014-15, we have had 79 sports leagues in different parts of Kashmir. Thousands of players have participated and tens of thousands have watched as spectators. So these are engagement initiatives. Then there are specific empowerment initiatives, capacity building initiatives in terms of taking them on very focused tours”, he said.
The Corps Commander said that Army is doing its bit and has provided employment to around 6000 Kashmiri youth in Army. “Then there is employment. From the army’s side, we have put in a lot of efforts specially post floods. Between September and December, 776 people were recruited into the army. This year, 4800 plus in Territorial Army and likewise 200-300 have joined the regular Army,” he said.
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