New Delhi: The government on Wednesday said that Pakistan was making attempts to reactivate terror camps in Balakot, a major base of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) which was bombed by the Indian Air Force in February this year.
Minister of state for home G. Kishan Reddy, in a written reply, informed the Rajya Sabha that, “Inputs indicate that attempts are being made by Pakistan-based terror outfits to reactivate its camp at Balakot and restart their religious and Jihadi indoctrination courses against India.”
The minister added that the government was totally committed to take all precautionary and necessary steps for protecting the country’s borders alo-ng with territorial integrity and sovereignty.
Earlier, intelligence inputs had indicated that some of the terror camps at Balakot were already operational and that Jaish had started training cadre there.
Mr Reddy also informed the Upper House that Centre had a zero tolerance policy on issues of national security and terrorism. The government, the minister of state further added, had initiated several measures in dealing with militancy in Jammu and Kashmir and the strategy was successful in eliminating a large number of active militants in the Valley in the last few months.
Till November 17, this year as many as 594 incidents of militancy had taken place in the Valley in which 37 civilians and 79 security personnel were killed. During the same period last year while 614 terror related incidents were reported leading to the death of 39 civilians and 91 security personnel.
On the issue of infiltration from across the border till October this year a total of 171 infiltration attempts were made while 114 were successful. Similarly, in 2018, there were 328 infiltration attempts of which 143 were successful.
Following a fidayeen attack on a CRPF convoy in Pulwama on February 14 in which 40 security personnel were killed, the Indian Air Force carried out an aerial attack of Jaish’s Balakot facility in which a large number of terrorist were killed and the camp was destroyed.
The aerial strike was carried out on February 26 following which Intelligence inputs indicated that Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI had helped Jaish to start the terror training camp again.
Meanwhile, union minister G. Kishan Reddy told Rajya Sabha on Wednesday that over 5,000 preventive arrests have been made in Jammu and Kashmir since August 5 when the Centre announced abrogation of Article 370 provisions, and 609 of them are still in custody.
Nobody has died in police firing since August 5, but 197 people have been injured in law and order incidents, he said. Replying to another question in the Parliament, the minister said the people of Jammu and Kashmir have suffered from terrorist violence and separatism supported from across the border for the past many decades.
