LoC killings: Army Chief Gen Bikram Singh to visit Poonch

Zee Media Bureau

Srinagar/New Delhi: In the backdrop of killing of Indian soldiers on the LoC, Army Chief Gen Bikram Singh will visit the Poonch district in Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday to review security situation. In a cowardly act, Pakistani troops had opened fire along the Line of Control in Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir yesterday night while killing five Indian soilders. A Junior Commissioned Officer and four soldiers were killed and another soldier was injured when the Pakistani troops ambushed the six-member Indian patrol. The attack took place around 400 metres inside Indian territory. A wounded soldier was airlifted to Jammu for specialized treatment. It was the worst border clash in Kashmir after January when two Indian soldiers were killed in Mendhar sector of the LoC. One of the soldiers was then beheaded while the body of the other was mutilated. After the incident in January, the Army Chief had said that India reserved the right to retaliate "at a place and time of our choosing". Gen Singh had also asked the commanders deployed on the LoC to respond immediately in case of provocations by Pakistan Army. "I expect my commanders to be aggressive in the face of firing," Gen Singh had said. After today`s incident, Director General of Military Operations Lt Gen Vinod Bhatia will speak to his counterpart in Pakistan Maj Gen Asfaque Nadeem tomorrow to raise the issue of killing of the five Indian soldiers in the cross-LoC attack in Jammu and Kashmir, Army officials said here. The Army Chief had also briefed the Defence Minister early morning today about the incident, they said. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also talked to Defence Minister AK Antony regarding this matter. Sources said the Prime Minister was kept informed about the developments since the morning. He spoke to Antony and asked him to ensure that the families of the victims are taken care of. The Army Chief is scheduled to visit the Division headquarters in Rajouri and the 93 Brigade headquarters to take stock of the security situation there. He is also expected to meet the Commanding Officer and troops of the units whose troops were killed in Pakistan`s Border Area Team action, Army officials said. Army officials added that the DGMO will raise with his Pakistani counterpart the issue of killing of Indian soldiers. The DGMOs of the two sides regularly talk to each other on every Wednesday. With PTI inputs