The
organised media trip to Surankot in Jammu and Kashmir by the Indian
security forces may prove to be a public relations disaster for the
military stop brass. The description of Operation Sarp Vinash by most
newspapers bore a close resemblance to the report of the blind men on the
shape and size of an elephant. However, a close reading of most accounts
of the handling of the operation does raise uncomfortable questions about
the level of alertness of the security forces in Jammu and Kashmir. The
“take-over” by the militants of an area of about 35 kilometres inside
Indian territory was a disturbing revelation. The official insistence that
the incursions by the militants should not be equated with Kargil raise
more than routine doubts about what was really happening in the Hilkaka
area. The militant outfits launched some of their most potent operations
in Jammu and Kashmir from this piece of land. Major-General Hardev Liddar,
general officer commanding of the Romeo Force, has been quoted as having
said that some of the field fortifications destroyed in the operation were
evidently constructed with the help of Pakistani regulars. The fact that
over 100 bunkers were destroyed by the Romeo Force points to the long
presence of the militants in the sensitive belt kissing the LoC. Bunkers
are not make-shift tents that can come up overnight. They were being used
for storing arms and ammunition and providing shelter to the militants.
Be that as
it may, the good news is that the Hilkaka operation has helped the Army
ferret out information about similar "cluster camps" in other
parts of Jammu and Kashmir. With the help of helicopters, a facility
denied to them earlier, the security forces are hopeful of smoking out
most militant groups through coordinated action. Of course, the fact that
about 60 militants were killed in an operation last month does not add up
to much. There are over 400 militants, representing various jehadi groups,
currently active in the Indian side of the LoC.
With the
construction of helipads at sensitive points in the difficult terrain, the
coming days may see the Army taste bigger success. The members of the
Romeo Force of the Rashtriya Rifles, backed by Victor Force across Pir
Panjal, are for the first time in a position to take complete control of
the dense forests along the LoC because of the air-support that is now
available to them. The administration too has played a key role by
preventing the migrant shepherds from entering the militant-infested
territory. Good luck Romeo for the different mission you have chosen for
yourself.
Previous
