Sweets from Pak followed by firing on Indian post

Jammu, Aug 15: Hardly had they savoured the sweets from the other side of the border,

troops were fired at by Pakistan

at a forward post in Samba sector in the seventh ceasefire violation in Jammu and Kashmir in 11 days.

"There was small arms firing at Indian Border Out Post (BoP) of Pansar along International Border in Samba sector around late this afternoon," a senior BSF officer said. Unprovoked firing by Pakistan rangers started around 15:30 hours and was on intermittently, the officer said, adding that BSF troops guarding the borderline replied back. There was no injury or damage caused in this firing on this side, he said.

The bitter moment for the BSF personnel came just hours after exchange of sweets and greetings on the Indo-Pak border between them and the troops of the Rangers on the occasion of India's 66th Independence Day.

Pakistani Rangers walked up to the Zero Line, 45-km from here, to greet their counterparts from the BSF. The Pakistanis brought sweets and gifts for BSF jawans, officials said. BSF troopers had also greeted their counterparts on the occasion of Pakistan's Independence Day yesterday. They also presented Pakistani border guards gifts and sweets, the officials said.

The BSF troopers and Pakistani Rangers had decorated their border posts to mark the occasion. There were in all 31 ceasefire violations this year. The recent firings and ceasefire violations by Pakistan came close on the heels of detection of 400-metre long tunnel in Jammu and Kashmir's Samba sector on Jul 28 and subsequent lodging of strong protest over the tunnel issue on Jul 31.

PTI