The pre-dawn attack on an Army camp in Panzgam village near Kupwara in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday is the latest among a string of attacks on military installations over the last two years, and symbolic of a dramatic turnaround in the nature of violence in the Valley.
According to the South Asia Terrorism Portal, 88 security forces personnel were killed in the State in 2016, the highest since 2008. This year, at least 15 personnel have already been killed and the Army anticipates a flare-up in attacks as summer sets in. Both 2015 and 2016 saw six major attacks each on military installations. In comparison, there were just three attacks in 2014 and even less the year before.
Sources in the Army say this is due to a combination of factors — from an increase in number of terrorists in the Valley to limited intelligence inputs to conduct operations. “Ascendency establishment of the terrorists is happening now,” an officer said, adding that two years back there were 150-200 terrorists while now there are about 250 to 300. To stop that, kinetic operations by the Army should go on, and for that intelligence should keep coming in, the officer said. The Army gets specific intelligence from local police and then conducts targeted operations. But with elections scheduled, the police were deployed for law-and-order duties, stymieing the flow of information, the officer said. The constant protests in the Valley over the past year also affected this information flow.
The Panzgam camp — located in an area of 600x400 metres, and about 20 km from Kupwara — functions as a rear administrative area for over nine Army units, including artillery and infantry. Officials said that terrorists likely chose the camp assuming that the response would be much higher as several different units function there.
Element of surprise
On fatalities suffered by security forces, the officer said that terrorists always have the element of surprise during which most of the casualties actually occur. “The first round is always to them. After that they are quickly localised and eliminated.” Panzgam has a two-layer perimeter security, with the inner and outer fences separated by 50-75 metres.
In the aftermath of the terror attack on Pathankot Air Force station in January 2016, a high-level committee chaired by the former Army Vice Chief, Lt. Gen. Philip Campose, was constituted by the government to review the security in place at major military installations and recommend measures to strengthen it. However, officials said, given the large number of Army camps along the Line of Control and International Boundary, it is not possible to upgrade each and every one to the same level. Then there are issues such as terrain and location. “If a person is determined, he can always come in,” the officer noted.
