The Hindu : Fencing along LoC to be completed by May

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Feb 09, 2004

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Fencing along LoC to be completed by May

By Our Staff Reporter

JAMMU, FEB. 8. Fencing operations along the 550-km Line of Control would be completed by May and this would deal a deathblow to terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, the Union Minister of State for Defence, Chaman Lal Gupta, said here today.

Talking to The Hindu here, Mr. Gupta said: "We would complete the fencing operations by the first week of May. The 285-km Line of Control along the Jammu region would be fenced by April whereas some of the higher reaches in Kashmir would be sealed by May. This would permanently block the infiltration routes on the Line of Control."

Terming fencing as the key to root out terrorism in the State, the Minister said: "... terrorism would not survive when the routes are blocked and the supply of arms and ammunition is cut off.''

According to the Minister, the winter has enabled the Army to gain an edge, particularly in the higher reaches. The Army recently caught some intercepts of the terrorists which clearly show the desperation among the terrorists. "The blocking of the routes of the terrorists has depleted the resources in terms of arms and money," Mr. Gupta said.

The Minister said: "The communication equipment of the terrorists is still active and this is what is scaring us. Terrorists continue to get directions from their mentors from across. Practically speaking there has been no change even after the ceasefire. In order to completely root out the terrorists' infrastructure from its soil, Pakistan has to close down their active camps in its territory.

"We have reports that Pakistan has shifted some of the terror camps in northern areas which were till recently functioning in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir."

On a counter-insurgency grid for the coming summer, the Minister said, "we are planning to add eight more territorial battalions in the State. This will help us to guard the remote areas and restore the sense of security among the people living in the belt."

The weapons of the Village Defence Committee personnel were being upgraded and at least one sophisticated weapon would be given to each member of the committee, the Minister said.

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