An Army jawan and a woman were killed as Pakistani troops today violated ceasefire twice along the Line of Control (LoC) in the Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir, officials said.
A defence spokesman said the Pakistan army initiated the unprovoked firing on the Indian Army posts at around 5 PM today. "The Indian Army retaliated strongly and effectively?" he said.
In the exchange of fire, Naib Subedar Jagram Singh Tomar (42), resident of Madhya Pradesh, was grievously injured and later succumbed to injuries, the spokesman said. Tomar, who hailed from Tarsana village in Morena district in MP, is survived by his wife Omavati Devi, a son and a daughter, he said.
"He was a brave and sincere soldier. The nation will always remain indebted to him for the supreme sacrifice and devotion to duty," he added.
His death took the number of jawans killed in the sector in the last five days to two. On August 8, Sepoy Pawan Singh Sugra (21) was killed in unprovoked Pakistani firing.
Earlier in the day, a 40-year-old woman was killed in Gohlad Kalran village after the Pakistani army resorted to indiscriminate firing for nearly one-and-a-half-hour.
"The Pakistani army initiated unprovoked and indiscriminate firing of small arms, automatic weapons and mortars from 0515 hours in Poonch sector along the LoC. The Indian Army personnel guarding the border posts retaliated strongly and effectively. The exchange of fire stopped at 0645 hours?" the spokesman said.
A police officer, while giving details about the incident, said at around 5.20 AM, mortar shells fired from across the border exploded near the house of one Mohammad Shabir in the village, killing his wife Raqia Bi.
Till August 1 this year, there have been 285 instances of ceasefire violation by the Pakistani troops. In 2016, the number was significantly less at 228.
Meanwhile, 658 schools along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir's Nowshera sector reopened today after remaining closed for a week following cross-border shelling by Pakistan. Authorities had closed 67l schools in Nowshera sector of Rajouri district on August 5 for safety and security of students in view of heavy and indiscriminate shelling. Thirteen schools in vulnerable areas would remain closed till further orders, officials said.
