District administration Kathua on Friday advised people living near International Border (IB) to evacuate villages in view of fresh cross border firing.
Sources said that India Pakistan engaged in heavy exchange of shelling and firing in Bobiya area Hiranagar sector after a sniper shot fired from across the border critically injured a Border Security Force (BSF) man.
According to sources, administration has requested people living on zero line in Bobiya area of Hiranagar sector to move to safer places.
“Administration has also established relief camps and assistance booths at government schools and temples to help the villages,” they added.
Sources said that fresh evacuation took place from the area ‘where BSF yesterday foiled a major infiltration bid by a group of six militants’.
Sources said that around 0935 hours in the morning Pakistan rangers targeted an on duty BSF man at Bobiya Border Out Post with sniper shot. The BSF soldier Gurnam Singh resident of Bhaleshar, R S Pura, was hit in the head and shifted to Government Medical College and Hospital, Jammu, they said.
“Upon this BSF troops retaliated in appropriate manner, resulting in exchange of fire for two hours,” sources added.
Sources said that Deputy Commissioner Kathua visited the affected villages and advised people to move to safer places.
Sources said that local authorities were using loudspeakers to make announcements asking the residents in the border villages to move to safer zones.
The authorities have also ordered the closure of schools and other institutions in that border belt.
Sources said that a large number of people have taken refuge in Government Higher Secondary School Hiranagar and Sheetla Mata Temple.
“The firing is on at IB since yesterday night, this morning some mortar shells landed in villages, in view of safety of people we requested them to evacuate the village,” DC Kathua, Ramesh Kumar told Kashmir Post.
He added that it’s not formal order of evacuation but an advisory and precautionary measure for the safety of civilians living near zero line.
Meanwhile, Jammu administration has advised the border people to stay indoors to avoid any mishap in view of firing along IB.
As per sources, Pakistan Rangers restored to fresh firing in RS Pura, Suchetghar and Pargwal sector of Jammu District.
Reports said that Pak ranger targeted Border out Post Abdullian in Suchetghar sectors with small arms bursts and restored to firing at several other areas.
Keeping in view the safety of the people, district administration advised the villagers in border areas to stay indoors.
“People living in bordering villages have been advised to stay indoors under hard roof to avoid any mishap” said Simrandeep Singh, DC Jammu.
This is second time in last one month when administration evacuated the border villages in view of border firing. Earlier the government had ordered the evacuation of villages in a 10-km belt along the border with Pakistan on September 29, following ‘surgical strikes’ by the Indian Army across the LoC.
Several thousand people from Kathua, Samba, Jammu, Rajouri and Poonch districts had migrated from border villages to safer areas. Schools within 10 kms of the border were also closed for several days.
