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'There are thick forests and the going is tough'

Mukhtar Ahmad in Srinagar

To prevent escalation of tension in Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district, the state administration has ordered the local police to immediately disarm village defence committee members.

This, senior police officers said, was so that VDC members would not be tempted to retaliate to Friday's massacre of 25 Hindus by militants.

"Many VDC members have already deposited their arms with the police," a senior official said, "These will be returned when the tension eases."

A local daily, meanwhile, has reported that many VDC members have been taken into preventive custody.

The state government has also decided to immediately appoint special police officers for deployment in remote villages. Security forces are patrolling the vulnerable areas in Doda.

Meanwhile, the massive combing operations mounted by the police and security forces in the district continues. So far, officials admitted, there has been no success.

"The terrain is tough and no immediate result is possible," said an officer who requested anonymity, "There are thick forests and the going is slow."

He said more security forces were needed to comb the hilly area. Chief Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah has requested the Centre to rush more forces for deployment in the troubled districts of Doda, Rajouri and Poonch. This will be taken up at the meeting on Wednesday, led by Union Home Minister L K Advani.

Defence Minister George Fernandes, Advani and central officials arrived in Srinagar on Tuesday for a two-day visit. Advani visited Doda soon after his arrival in the morning.

Meanwhile, 18 people, including nine militants, were killed in the stepped-up violence across the state in the past 24 hours. Police said five top militants and two jawans, including a junior commissioned officer, were killed in a fierce gunbattle at Safapora in Baramullah district.

The commander of a pro-India militant outfit, the Al-Ikhwanul Muslemeen, who was injured in a blast on Monday, succumbed to his injuries. Five of the Muslemeen's top commanders, including its chief commander, were killed in the massive blast.

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