War like stores recovered by Army, police in Kashmir

Srinagar, July 30 (UNI) The Army and Jammu and Kashmir police have unearthed a number of hideouts and recovered war-like stores in the Kashmir valley during the past 24 hours.

A defence ministry spokesman said 126 Territorial Army (TA) battalion launched a search operation at village Shutiyan near Gagangir, Sonamarg, about 85 from here on the strategically important 434-km-long Srinagar-Leh national highway last evening.

There was a specific information that militants have for the first time stored arms and ammunition in the area, he said adding security forces, after a long search, finally smashed the hideout.

He said arms and ammunition recovered included four hand grenades, one UBGL grenade, seven AK magazines, two sticks of plastic explosives, two electric detonators, three radio sets, five antennas, one binoculars, about 160 rounds of ammunition and some clothing and food items.

However, no one was arrested during the operation, he said.

The arms and ammunition was to target security forc convoys and Amarnath pilgrims going to Baltal base camp.

A police spokesman of the Kashmir zone said troops of Jammu and Kashmir police and 21 Rashtriya Rifles (RR) recovered war like stores from the hideout of Pakistan based Lashker-e-Toiba (LeT) in north Kashmir.

He said RR and police launched a joint operation in Rajwar forest following a tip off that militants have stored arms and ammunition in a specially built hideout.

After a long search for several hours, security forces finally unearthed the hideout in the dense forest at Nichhama in the frontier district of Kupwara.

Later, 20 RPG shells, 29 green shells, 19 RPG boosters, 22 UBGL grenades, one box of ammunition containing 740 rounds and other incriminating documents were recovered from the hideout belonging to LeT.

He said the green shells were being used for making quick and reliable IED.

UNI BAS PA RK1405