Anti-terror ops to focus on Baramulla, Pulwama

After assessing the ground situation in Jammu and Kashmir, the security forces are learnt to be strategising to launch anti-terror operations focusing on Baramulla and Pulwama, the heavily forested districts where the highest number of Pakistan-trained terrorists are suspected to be hiding.

Pulwama is in south Kashmir and had an estimated 45 to 50 terrorists who had infiltrated from across the border, said sources. Baramulla, which falls in north Kashmir, had around 55 to 60 terrorists, they said.

The assessment is based on electronic surveillances systems and sightings reported by sources in the security forces. The Pakistan-trained terrorists enjoyed the support of several local youths, who acted as guides through the mountains and ensured logistics such as food, drinking water and safe houses, the sources said.

In 2024, the security agencies neutralised 70 terrorists in J&K, of whom 45 were trained in Pakistan. The number of local terrorists was on the decline, said the sources. The Army has been using technology such as surveillance drones, infrared cameras and human intelligence to track down terrorists.

The recovery of a large number of drones—more than 270 found in 2024 alone—suggests a shift in the tactics of the terrorists. The drones, it is believed, may have been used to drop small loads of supplies or to keep an eye on the movement of security personnel. The Army has effectively deployed an indigenous anti-drone system in Jammu and Kashmir to counter aerial threats, particularly along the Line of Control.