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| 2 women of one family killed, 5 hurt in Pak shelling on IB at Samba | | 3 BSF cops among 10 wounded at different places on IB; LoC peaceful | |  Early Times Report
JAMMU, Oct 8: There are winds of destiny that blow when we least expect them. Booti Ram (70) and his seven family members, who spent the night in a makeshift Samba camp to save themselves from the Pak shells, returned home at Chilyari, a border Samba village, this morning. While they were sipping tea, a mortar fired from across the International Border (IB) landed in their verandah and exploded, resulting in the instant death of two family women and critical injuries to five others.
As Pakistan has constantly been targeting forward BSF outposts and border villages for the past over a week now, almost all the people living close to the IB have migrated to makeshift camps set up at places which are beyond the reach of the Pak shells and bullets. Booti's family was also putting up in one such camp at Samba.
However, he and all his family members went home at Chilyari at about 7.30 am today for the purpose of cleaning the house. While they were sipping tea in the verandah of their house, a Pak shell fell there at about 8 am. In the explosion, Booti's wife Shakuntla Devi (60) and daughter-in-law Bholi Devi (35) were killed on the spot while he himself, his son and Bholi's husband Soudagar Mal (40) and the latter's children - Koushal (11), Kudeep Raj (14) and a daughter - survived with critical splinter injuries. Soudagar's another daughter, who had gone to the fields, survived unhurt.
All the injured were hospitalised. After this incident, other Chilyari residents, who too had come homes in the morning, shifted to their makeshift camps.
At Joura Farm and some other places on the IB, 10 more persons, including three BSF personnel, sustained injuries in the Pak firing and were hospitalised. Six of them were injured while they were returning homes after night stay in a shelter camp at R S Pura.
Official sources said the Pak Rangers targeted 50 Border outposts (BoPs) and 35 hamlets overnight along the 192-km IB. The escalation has triggered an exodus, with 16,000 people moving to safer areas from border villages.
India returned the fire. Intermittent exchange of fire between the two sides was continuing when reports last came in tonight.
Along the Line of Control (LoC), the firing stopped last night in Mendhar and Poonch areas after forces gave a befitting reply, Defence sources said.
A BSF spokesman said that "Pakistani Rangers again resorted to unprovoked mortar shelling and heavy firing on BSF posts all along IB after 8 pm last night." As many as 50 BSF BoPs were affected by the fire from Pakistan side, he said, adding areas along IB in Arnia, R S Pura, Kanachak and Pargwal sub-sectors in Jammu and Samba districts were targeted.
Eight people have been killed and 71 others, including BSF jawans, injured in the Pak shelling and firing along LoC and IB in Jammu and Poonch districts in over two dozen ceasefire violations since October 1 this year. On Monday, Pakistani troops violated ceasefire by resorting to heavy firing and shelling in Arnia belt along IB in Jammu in which 5 people were killed and 34 injured. On October 3, Pakistani troops violated ceasefire in Gulmarg sector of Kashmir valley and in Poonch and Jammu sectors in which a girl was killed and six persons were injured.
The spokesman said almost all the BSF posts in Samba and Hiranagar belts of Kathua were targeted by the Rangers. "BSF troops at all these places gave a strong and befitting reply to fire from Pak," he said.
Over 15,000 people have migrated from border hamlets along IB in Jammu to safer places due to the firing and shelling, Jammu district magistrate Ajeet Kumar Sahu said.
In Samba and Kathua districts, over 10 to 15 border villages have been targeted by Pakistani Rangers.
Over 1500 to 2000 people have also migrated from forward villages along IB in Samba and Kathua districts.
Along LoC, the firing and shelling by Pakistani troops in Balnoie, Mankote, Mendhar, Bhimbher Gali, Balakote and Poonch forward areas ended last night but troops had not lowered their guard there, Defence sources said.
A Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) Subash Singh was among three Army men injured in Sabjian belt of Poonch sector yesterday. |
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