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Pak not bothered about civilian casualties: BSF DG 10/7/2014 11:16:26 PM New Delhi, Oct 7: Indian and Pakistani troops will likely continue shelling each other for a few more days, the director general of Border Security Force (BSF) said on Tuesday, vowing to give a fitting reply in an unexpected flare-up that has so far claimed 18 lives on both sides of the border. "It will take a couple of days before it subsides. The shelling has now gone into a reaction/counter-reaction mode and frankly if you ask me, Pakistan is not bothered about civilian casualties,'' BSF chief DK Pathak told on the phone from a forward post in the Jammu sector where Pakistani shelling has killed five civilians. Emphasising his resolve to "hit Pakistan hard", Pathak said the Indian government's mind was clear on how to deal with the situation. "Both the Home Minister and the Defence Minister have made it clear that we are to respond effectively," he said. "We have been given a free hand to answer each provocation. If Pakistan fires mortars, we retaliate with mortars and match rocket launchers with rocket launchers." The border violence has taken a toll on both sides. While India has lost five civilians and nine more have been injured in overnight shelling, the death toll in Pakistan, according to the BSF, has gone up to 13. While there are some reports of the Pakistani army providing covering fire to infiltrators, Pathak was firm that the neighbour had fired without provocation. "I would be delighted to know the reasons for why Pakistan is targeting civilian population and that too on Eid," he said. "As a policy we do not resort to first fire. At the last flag meeting in August we agreed to not fire at each other. We are a professional force and we are only retaliating.'' The retaliation, he admitted was fierce. "They are getting it back badly,'' Pathak said. Pakistan, in turn, has accused India of targeting its civilians and lodged a protest with the United Nations Military Observer Group on Tuesday.   Share This News with Your Friends on Social Network     Comment on this Story

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