A Hizbul terrorists lifespan is just one year and we have the SPOs of Kashmir to thank

Srinagar, Sep 22: On Friday, the Valley witnessed the killing of three policemen. After being abducted by the Hizbul Mujahideen, the three special officers were killed by terrorists, sending shock waves across the country.

Incidentally the the killings come just three days after the terrorist outfit had posted a video calling for the resignation of all police officers, especially the special police officers (SPO).

In the video message, the Hizbul targets the SPOs in particular. It says that it would kill policemen, especially the SPOs if they do not resign within four days. The SPOs are recruited by the police on a fixed monthly renumeration of Rs 6,000.

They form a very important part of the police force, especially when it comes to gathering local intelligence. There are around 30,000 SPOs in Jammu and Kashmir and their services are being renewed from time to time.

Why are the SPOs targeted:

As mentioned above, they form a crucial part of the police team. They gather the intelligence from the ground, which is then shared both with the police as well as the Army. This is the intelligence that has led to the precision killing of terrorists in the Valley in the past one year.

Take for instance, the case of Shopina, which is infested with terrorists. This year, statistics reveal that 28 terrorists were killed in Shopian alone. This is thanks to the precise intelligence that has been gathered with the help of the SPOs.

The SPOs work on a honorarium and it was in January that it had been doubled to Rs 6,000. The decision was taken to boost the morale of the SPOs, who play a vital role in combating terrorism in the state.

A change in pattern:

Back in the 1990s, when terrorism was at its peak, the terrorists did not target police personnel. In fact they tried to win them over rather than trying to kill them. Following the restoration of normalcy in the Valley in the late 1990s, the police had become extremely active and the local cops were able to get pin-pointed information.

The other forces in the Valley do not have their routes in the state. Hence it becomes extremely difficult for them to get information easily. This is when the SPOs and other local police personnel came in handy to deliver on the intelligence front. It became easier for the cops to gather information Kashmir is a very interactive and closely integrated society. The police have always known, who is the terrorist and who is not.

In the recent wave of encounters, the speciality was that they were pin-pointed. The security forces rely heavily on the ground level intelligence from the local cops as a result of which they have not just gunned down ordinary terrorists, but top commanders as well.

The former chief of the Research and Analysis Wing, C D Sahay tells OneIndia that every operation of the forces has been backed by pin-point information, which has been given by the local police. What is more important is that real-time information is being fed and this has helped neutralise terrorists with ease, Sahay also explains. What is more important is that this sort of intelligence has reduced the lifespan of Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists to less than a year, he also says.