By Ria Jain
The Indian Army succeeded in repelling a Pakistani drone in the early hours of Sunday, post its breach of the Line of Control (LoC) in the Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir. This incident, in the Digwar sector. It was reportedly the second aerial incursion that was detected and countered by the Indian security forces in three consecutive days.
According to Army officials, this movement of (UAV) Unmanned Aerial vehicle was detected at around 6:10AM. The alert sentries on duty at the forward post noticed the drone coming from the Pakistani territory and under the Indian sky. With speed and precision the Indian forces fired about a dozen rounds of small arms in order to bring down the intruding instrument.
Although the drone managed to escape the intense firing, it was forced to retreat immediately into the Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK). This brief encounter further did prompt a security response on ground. After the incident, the Indian Army launched a search operation in the forested terrain of the Digwar region. The main objective of this operation was to ensure the drone had not dropped anything like illicit weapons, narcotics, ammunitions: a recurring way of causing inter border insurgencies and smuggling.
This comes after the encounter of February 27 when Indian troops openly fired on Pakistani troops in the very sector, thus putting the area on high alert under stringent security. Using drones for inter border smuggling and surveillance purposes has become a major challenge for security agencies along the Line of Control. Sunday’s events and the actions on part of the Army that followed have led to high vigilance maintained by the Indian frontline defenders. This is for the safety of the country’s integrity against the growing warfare technology and the threats that follow. Previously the search operation was ongoing although there have been no suspicious material found as of yet.