High alert along Indo-Pak border over infiltration

Mon, Jan 11 09:41 AM

Jammu, Jan 11: Troops along the Indo-Pak border in Jammu and Kashmir have been put on high alert after reports of an increase in infiltration attempts into the state.

"There are intelligence reports of further increase in the cross-border infiltration attempts from Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK). Troops have been put on high alert along the Indo-Pak border and have intensified round-the-clock patrolling," security officials said.

According to intelligence received, 1,000 to 1,200 terrorists are staged along the border in launching pads to infiltrate into Jammu and Kashmir from POK, they said.

In view of the foggy conditions, troops have been setting up more ambushes and intensified patrolling round the clock, they said.

"Militants try to take benefit of the thick fog to cut the fence and infiltrate as there is no visibility even at very close range during the night," a source said.

Police have also activated Border Village Defence Committees as another tier of security and are keeping a close watch inside the border belts.

There were three infiltration bids, which were foiled by the security forces along the International Border and Line of Control (LoC) in less than a week.

The first infiltration bid in this year was foiled by BSF at Narianpur Border Out Post in Ramgarh sub-sector of Samba district on January 4.

It was followed by another infiltration bid along Line of Control (LoC) in Balakote area of Poonch district on January 8.

A patrolling party of BSF also foiled another infiltration bid after a brief firefight when militants after cutting the fence had come inside in the forward area of Garkhal in Pargwal belt of Akhnoor tehsil in Jammu district on January 9.

Information from various security agencies involved in security grid in the state has put the figure of infiltration attempts at 433 in 2009, 91 attempts more than 2008. According to the police, 342 infiltration attempts were made from across the border in 2008, while 2007 and 2006 reported 535 and 573 such attempts along LoC and IB in Jammu and Kashmir.

Confirming surge in infiltration, state Director General of Police Kuldeep Khoda told PTI that measures have been taken by security forces to foil these bids and it is an area of concern at a time when violence has gone down in Jammu and Kashmir.

Referring to cross-border Infiltration, General Officer Commanding, 16 Corps, Lt Gen Rameshwar Roy had told reporters last week that there has been an increase in infiltration attempts but their crossing into the state across the LoC has not increased.

Indian scientists on hitlist

Sun, Jan 10 05:27 AM
At least seven top scientists working in sensitive sectors and important defence installations have been provided Y security — police escort 24 x 7 — after "specific threats" were received against them.

These are scientists working in the space, nuclear and sensitive defence technology areas. Based on the threats, reviews were carried out at high levels before taking precautionary measures.

Similarly, throughout last year, the maximum terror threat, sources said, was to defence installations and, in fact, sources said, one such plan was "disrupted" when intelligence was received around October-November that installations had been surveyed in 2008 for launching "sea borne attacks".

This prompted a major review of coastal security arrangements by agencies as well as the Cabinet Committee on Security. Key among these targets were the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre and INS Virat.

Around July-August, the government received information of about 34 targets which were again primarily defence and other sensitive installations. These included the Army Headquarters in Delhi, the Western Naval Command and other military areas in Mumbai besides the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington.

With the arrest of David Coleman Headley, sources said, it's now clear that groups like the Lashkar-e-Toiba were sponsoring surveillance of key targets here. But the unanswered question still remains about scientists becoming targets and how they are being monitored.

At least 12-14 terror plans, top government sources said, were disrupted or prevented last year. Much of this was possible because the capacity for terror groups to carry out these attacks in India had vastly diminished. With the Indian Mujahideen rounded up, the LeT had to launch Pakistani terrorists for the Mumbai attacks.

But 26/11 led to unprecedented cooperation between India and the US on security matters. Both sides figured out that all groups active in India had some six to seven key nodes in Pakistan from where they received support, direction, training and other necessary logistics.

Since last September, international partners like the US have been able to make matters difficult for these "nodes" to function. More importantly, sources confirmed that so far, key plans have come to be known in advance making it possible to take preventive action.

Antique musical instruments exhibition in Jaipur

Sun, Jan 10 09:35 PM
Jaipur, Jan 10(ANI): An exhibition of 550 antique musical instruments, a good number of them dating back to the medieval times, is a major draw here for local visitors and tourists.

The special collection of instruments has almost all types of instruments like Dholak, Tabla, Jalatarang, Kasth Tarang, Veena, flutes, Sarangis, Khartal, violins, guitar, Sitar, Tanpura, Nagada among others.

It is worth mentioning that most of the instruments put for public viewing are no more available around the world.

The credit for raising their collection, which includes four musical instruments belonging to Buddhist era, and meticulously preserving these instruments is attributed to two avid music artistes, Mohammad Aziz (55) and Santosh Sharma in his mid-thirties.

The duo inherited some of the instruments from their forefathers.

"We have four musical instruments belonging to Buddhist era such as the Jamgan and Jalgan. We have a cloth-made Tabla and Dholak during the period of medieval Haridas because people at that time did not play on instruments made from leather. Sursota of Surdas and has Trang were made up from web material," said Santosh Sharma.

Mohammad Aziz, who is a music teacher, wishes to establish a museum with a learned curator to care for their collection.

"I have requested the government to provide me place where I can turn the collection of instruments into a museum. People should know that there are such rare variety of instruments in the world," said Aziz.

They have also desired that the Limca Book of Records and the Guinness Book of World Records endorse their achievement. By Lokendra Singh (ANI)