A civilian was injured in a fresh ceasefire violation by the Pakistani army in the Pir Panjal valley’s Poonch district on Saturday.
An Army spokesman said the Pakistani army initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation and used small arms and shelling with mortars along the Line of Control in Mendhar Sector, Mankote and Krishna Ghati around 9 a.m.
The Army soldiers manning the LoC retaliated strongly, he said.
A Naib Sarpanch, Zaffar Ullah Khan of Baloni in Mankote tehsil, was injured when a shell exploded in the area.
PTI adds:
The cross-border shelling was going on when last reports were received, a police official said adding the firing triggered panic among the border residents who have been directed to stay at safer places to avoid any casualty.
The firing from across the border took place on the day when Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is scheduled to visit the State to lay a wreath at the Kargil War Memorial in Dras to commemorate 20 years of the Indian Army’s ‘Operation Vijay’.
On July 20, Mr. Singh will also dedicate to the nation two bridges built by the Border Roads Organisation at Ujh in Kathua district and Basantar in Samba district.
The Ujh bridge is one kilometre-long and the Basantar bridge is 617.4 metres, officials said.
Operation Vijay refers to the Indian Army’s limited war against Pakistan’s infiltration in 1999 fought at the icy heights of Kargil, including super-high altitude locations such as Tololing and Tiger Hill.