IAF clears way for Army
assault on Tiger Hill
From Girja Shankar Kaura
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, June 25 — The Indian Air Force fighter aircraft, armed with newly developed precision guided munitions (PGM) developed by the Western Air Command (WAC), continued the pounding of the Tiger Hill feature for the second day today inflicting further damage on the infiltrators’ positions even as seven more of them were killed in the past 24 hours of ‘Operation Vijay’ in the Kargil sector of Jammu and Kashmir.

IAF’s Mirage-2000 and other aircraft used the precision guided munition, improvised by the WAC specifically for the operations in the Kargil sector, to further completely destroy the targets on Tiger Hill which had also been pounded yesterday. The IAF jets, according to reports, also carried out precision guided munition attacks, which include the laser guided weapons, on some other targets in the region.

As the ground troops prepared to consolidate the gains made by the IAF poundings on Tiger Hill, reports said some strikes had also been carried out through the newly developed precision guided weapons on targets beyond Point 5203 in the Batalik sector. These attacks had also been highly effective as was the case at Tololing Hills and Tiger Hill.

According to reports there had been a large number of casualties during the attacks carried out at Tiger Hill, which has been the most dominating feature overlooking the Srinagar-Leh national highway 1A. Although a final assessment is still to be made a senior IAF officer here said the figure of casualties could easily be put at over 50 infiltrators killed.

The strikes at Tiger Hill also signal towards a decisive gain for the ground troops over this strategic position, which would enable them to get closer to the Line of Control. The Pakistanis had been using this position very effectively to direct artillery fire onto the Dras brigade headquarters and to also obstruct vehicular movement on the highway.

The IAF said the post attack analysis at Tiger Hill had been extremely effective and successful in achieving the required results. The attacks would also help in reducing the attrition from the infiltrators and choking the sustenance routes besides also reducing the time required in achieving success in taking over the heights.

The IAF spokesman briefing newsmen here said that the IAF fighter planes and helicopters made very effective strikes yesterday and today. Although he did not elaborate, but said the post-attack analysis had pointed that the new weapon delivery techniques developed by the WAC had proved to be very accurate and had caused considerable damage to the positions being held by the Pakistani infiltrators.

The use of this newly developed weapon delivery techniques have helped the IAF attack the infiltrators positions from far, keeping the planes away from the anti-aircraft fire which the enemy has been using. The IAF planes had encountered anti-aircraft fire from the infiltrators in the past few days. The precision guided munition however allowed the IAF to target these positions with accuracy and telling effect.

The PGM also allowed the IAF to carry out the bombing without putting the ground troops in danger. Reports here said the positions on which the attacks were carried out also had ground troops very close to them and any mistake would have put them in danger.

The IAF spokesman said the attacks carried out on enemy positions in the Dras sector for the past two days had been witnessed closely by the ground troops, who had also reported about the effectiveness and the extent of damage as a result of bombing. He added that such attacks also help in boosting the morale of the ground forces and accordingly shatter the resistance of the enemy.

Meanwhile, Pakistan opened up new points of conflict all along the LoC shelling the sectors with mortar and artillery firing. Pakistan continued to target civilian areas with mortar and artillery shelling in Keran, Kanzalwan, Macchal, Rampur, Poonch, Bhimbergali, Krishnaghati, Naushera, Sunderbani and Palanwala.

The Army spokesman said India lost three jawans in the fighting in different sectors of Kargil as the casualty figure went up to 168. Besides, 337 had been wounded and nine were missing in action. The Pakistani army has suffered 347 killed, with the addition of seven in the past 24 hours, which also include 15 officers.

Asked how would he assess the progress made by "Operation Vijay", which will complete a month tomorrow, the Army spokesman said "substantial gains" had been made, but it would be difficult to make an assessment. For example, he said, it had taken 21 days to clear the Tololing Ridge line. The Army had thought it would take less time.

The biggest gain in Batalik sector, he said, had been Point 5203. Asked about the fighting around Tiger Hill, he said all positions held by the Pakistanis would be vacated soon. He said there was a distinct dip in the morale of the Pakistani forces and mercenaries who had infiltrated into Kargil sector as they were running out of supplies. "The zeal with which they started has gone".

The Army spokesman said after Indian troops recaptured one or two important features the area in which the infiltration had taken place would be greatly reduced. The intruders had already been pushed back 5 km. Asked whether Pakistan had occupied an Indian post in Marpola sector, he said the area was very much with India.