Two SOG personnel went missing in Kishtwar’s Dachhan on Wednesday. Police and Army have launched a joint search operation.
Two Special Operations Group (SOG) personnel went missing in the higher reaches of Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district, prompting security forces to launch a massive joint search operation in the mountainous region on Wednesday.
The missing personnel were identified as Babi Chand (57) and Rashpal Kumar (45), both posted with the SOG of the local police at their Kiyar village in Dachhan, officials told news agency PTI.
According to officials, the two personnel were travelling from Kiyar camp towards an Army post at Dharna-Marwah to relieve duty at a Temporary Operating Base (TOB) of the Rashtriya Rifles when they went missing.
They reportedly failed to reach their destination. Their mobile phones were initially reachable but were subsequently switched off, raising concerns about their whereabouts.
Following their disappearance, a massive search operation was launched jointly by the police and the Army’s Rashtriya Rifles to trace them.
An SOG team, accompanied by the Station House Officer (SHO), proceeded towards the area at around 7 pm, according to the information shared about the incident.
Security teams were deployed across the surrounding areas, including difficult and mountainous forest terrain, to establish the whereabouts of the missing personnel and ascertain the circumstances surrounding their disappearance.
Gunshots were also heard in the area, according to the initial information, even as the search operation continued.
Police have not ruled out a terror angle in the incident. However, officials told PTI that it would be premature to link the disappearance to militant activity until the facts emerge.
Further details are awaited as the search and investigation continue.
KISHTWAR POLICE ON HIGH ALERT AFTER KULGAM ATTACK
The development comes amid heightened security concerns in Jammu and Kashmir following a terror attack on a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) post in Kulgam district earlier on Wednesday.
According to IANS, Kishtwar Police have reportedly been placed on high alert following the Kulgam attack, with a search operation underway in the district.
In the Kulgam incident, two heavily armed terrorists emerged from a dense cluster of trees and opened fire at a CRPF post near Mir Bazar, injuring three personnel, PTI reported, quoting officials.