Srinagar: As many as 109 civilians and security forces personnel were killed and 565 injured in cross-border firing and shelling along the International Border (IB) and Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir in past two years and seven months.
These figures have been revealed by Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in response to an RTI application submitted by Jammu-based activist Raman Sharma.
The reply states that as compared to previous two years, 2018 witnessed maximum number of ceasefire violations and cross border firing incidents along both IB and LoC. As many as 1,435 such incidents were reported till July this year which is more the number of incidents reported during 2016 and 2017 together.
In year 2016, the number of ceasefire violations reported were 449 including 228 at the LoC and the rest at the IB whereas in 2017 the number stood at 971 including 860 at the LoC and 111 at the IB, the reply says.
Among those killed in cross-border hostilities in 2016, 2017 and, so far, this year included 56 Army and Border Security Force (BSF) personnel and 53 civilians. Twenty eight of these civilians fell prey in 2018 alone. The injured included 302 civilians and 268 security personnel, the MHA said. So far this year, twelve troopers of the BSF have lost their lives and 47 others have been injured while defending the 198-km stretch of the IB whereas nine of their colleagues had been killed and 30 injured in 2016 and 2017.
