Search for two missing commandos in J&K’s Anantnag forests enters Day 3

The search operation to locate and rescue two missing soldiers in Anantnag district of Jammu entered its third day on Thursday, officials here said.

Dense vegetation, rough terrain and inclement weather continued to hinder the efforts, they added.

The soldiers, both commandos of an elite Para unit, went missing during a combing operation in the Kokernag area on Tuesday. The operation was launched two days ago in the Ahlan Gadole area, following inputs that a group of terrorists was hiding in the area, officials said.

According to officials, the two soldiers went missing after their communication line went out. Helicopters were pressed into aerial reconnaissance to locate the commandos.

Srinagar-based Chinar Corps of the Army said the operational team was caught in a severe snowstorm on Monday night.

"On the intervening night of October 6 and 7, an operational team on the Kishtwar range confronted a severe snowstorm and whiteout conditions in the mountains of South Kashmir. Since then, two soldiers have gone out of communication," the Chinar Corps said in a post on X on Wednesday.

"Intense search and rescue operations have been launched but hampered due to prevailing adverse weather conditions," it said.