Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 11: Pakistani troops again resorted to heavy mortar shelling and firing along the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch district and International Border in Hiranagar sector of Kathua district causing injuries to two civilians and damage to some houses as shells landed in the populated areas.
Reports said Pakistan army pounded civilian areas with long range mortar shells on the LoC at Sha-hpur, Kirni, Mandhar, Bandichec-hian, Kasba and surrounding villages in Poonch district this evening in which two civilians were injured. Pak-istan also targeted forward defence posts.
The Indian Army retaliated leading to heavy exchanges which continued for about one and half hours.
Two civilians who were injured in the firing have been identified as Mohammad Salim, 18, son of Najjar Din, a resident of Bandichechian and Tanveer Akhter, 13, daughter of Mohammad Sharief R/o Kasba.
Injured civilians were evacuated from the site of shelling and shifted to the District Hospital Poonch from where Salim was referred to the Government Medical College (GMC) Jammu in view of his critical condition. Tanveer Akhtar was responding to the treatment in Poonch hospital.
Pakistan was also reported to have suffered casualties and damages in the Indian retaliation but exact details couldn’t be ascertained immediately.
Several mortar shells fired by Pakistan army fell in civilian areas of Shahpur, Kirni, Mandhar, Kasba and Bandichechian besides surroundings from 4 pm to 6 pm today causing panic among the border dwellers, who took shelter inside houses and bunkers. Several shells exploded near the houses, damaging them. Number of civilians had narrow escape in the shelling and firing.
Panic-stricken people deserted the fields and other places of work as soon as shelling started and rushed to safety. Only few days back, two civilians including a woman and a student were killed and nine others were injured in Pakistan shelling and firing on the LoC in Poonch district.
Meanwhile, Pakistani Rangers also fired mortar shells at forward villages of Rathua and Pansar along the International Border (IB) in Hiranagar sector of Kathua district late last night targeting civilian areas directly.
Four houses were damaged in the shelling in Hiranagar sector but there was no casualty.
A live mortar shell fell in the house of Ram Pyari but it was defused by the BSF’s Bomb Disposal Squad later.
Administration has advised the people living close to the International Border to stay inside their houses after evening.
There has been spurt in ceasefire violations by the Pakistan army on the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir especially in the twin border districts of Poonch and Rajouri since August 5 when special Constitutional provisions of J&K were abrogated and the erstwhile State was bifurcated into two Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh.
While few soldiers of the Indian Army have attained martyrdom in Pakistan firing, the troops have inflicted very heavy casualties and damages on the enemy side and filed their series of attempts to push trained militants into the Indian territory.
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