Defense report ‘expresses concern’ on infiltration

The annual report released by the Indian Ministry of Defense for the year 2009-’10, in which it has expressed its ‘concern with the worsening security situation in Pakistan’, has published figures on terrorist infiltration into Jammu and Kashmir that appear considerably more conservative in comparison to the assessments made by the state police and the Ministry of Home Affairs, India’s internal security ministry.

Although the ministry quoted from the report, in a statement released late on Monday entitled India Expresses Concern Over Continuing Infiltration in Jammu and Kashmir, saying, “The continued infiltrations across the LoC (Line of Control) and the existence of terrorist camps across the India-Pak border (however), demonstrate the continuing ambivalence of Pakistan in its actions against terrorist organizations,” it also said, “All parameters of proxy war are at an all time low and the current situation indicated a shift towards normalcy and peace… the ceasefire on the borders / LoC is holding out with a few minor aberrations.”

The ministry report said that during the period between April 01, 2009 to February 28, 2010, 213 terrorists were killed and 68 apprehended in encounters with the Armed Forces. Interestingly, the report also cites 33 infiltration bids with 50 dead terrorists in the same period, a figure that appears substantially more sober in comparison to the figures attributed to the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Jammu and Kashmir State Police.

A report entitled Jammu and Kashmir Assessment – Year 2010, compiled by the New Delhi-based Institute for Conflict Management-run South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP) says, “The MHA’s year-end review (data till November) stated that, during 2009, 473 infiltration bids were attempted, out of which 367 were foiled. According to infiltration figures compiled by the Multi-Agency Center (MAC), the nodal agency for all terrorism-related intelligence under the Union Home Ministry, while 93 terrorists were intercepted and neutralized during the 473 infiltration attempts, and 227 retreated into Pakistan on being intercepted, 110 terrorists managed to give the border forces a slip.”

The SATP report also says the Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police put the infiltration-bid figure at 433, up by 91 from 2008. “According to J&K Police figures 342 infiltration attempts were made from across the border in 2008, while 2007 and 2006 reported 535 and 573 such attempts respectively along the LoC and International Border (IB) in J&K,” says the SATP in its report, also adding, “Army Chief General Deepak Kapoor, on January 14, said the infiltration level had increased, with 110 terrorists managing to sneak in, till November, in 2009, as compared to 57 in 2008.”