Deaths in terror-related incidents spiked in last 4 months in J&K: Govt data
There has been a sudden spurt in fatalities in terrorism-related incidents in Jammu and Kashmir over the past four months, just ahead of the one-year anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370 that stripped the valley of its special status.
According to official government data, a total of 257 fatalities (182 militants, 38 security personnel, and 37 civilians) have been reported in the valley in the past one year (August 2019 to July 2020).
Of these killings 152 (or almost 60 per cent) have been reported in the last four months (from April to July) including the death of 28 security personnel and 12 civilians. More than 100 terrorists/insurgents were killed during the same time period.
June saw the highest number of fatalities as 48 terrorists, two security personnel and three civilians were killed in violent encounters.
While the total number of fatalities in 2019 was 283, it has reached to 207 by July of 2020 and is expected to increase in the coming months. The government had reported 231 fatalities during the same period in the previous year.
According to government data, while the number of ceasefire violations by Pakistan peaked in 2019, it saw a dip in 2020. Around 3,168 ceasefire violations were reported in 2019 alone compared to 2,140 in 2018 and 881 in 2017. The number stands at 646 for the current year (till July).
There has also been an evident drop in insurgency in the region since last year, according to the data. While there had been 23 attempts of infiltration in 2019, only seven were successful.
The number of infiltrations was 65 in 2014 when the NDA government came to power in India. It later increased between 2016 and 2018 – 119 in 2016, 136 in 2017 and 143 in 2018 – but was under control last year.