Even as the security forces gear up to new-age threats posed by drones on the international border with Pakistan, the border guarding forces are equally concerned about the defence installations and infrastructure coming up on the Pakistani side.
Sources said the installations that are being built closer to the international border make the cross-border threat more potent. This is because outfits like the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed have been using the cover of security forces to launch operations. Particularly after the Balakot airstrike, these outfits have shifted their camps and are now in deep locations that have adequate cover.
“The bigger the cover being provided by Pakistani forces, the easier it is for the cross border territory outfits to camouflage their activities,” said a security official.
A case in point is the missing drone after the Jammu air base attack. The drone, after dropping the near 6kg consignment of sophisticated IEDs, appears to have flown back to its original destination. The search and cordon operations have not shown signs of any debris of the drone around the airbase or nearby locations which means that the sophisticated strike was not the handiwork of any inexperienced outfit, but had covert support and cover provided to it.
In the past, the cross-border infiltration had the support of Pakistan Rangers, where the terrorists used to sneak in under the cover of firing from both sides. As infiltration attempts have drastically dropped this year, with one incident reported in February, the tactics of terror outfits seem to have changed.
A team of National Security Guard, Union Home Ministry, NIA and CISF visited the site of the drone attack and held discussions on quick deployment of anti-drone mechanisms at border areas, sensitive installations and airports. The concerns regarding the border infrastructure being ramped up on Pakistani side and steps being taken by security forces to thwart all kinds of attacks, including drone attacks, were also discussed.
Recently, the border forces had raised concern over constructions on the Pakistani side that included a double-decker bunker opposite Gurdaspur, less than 200 metres from the international border; constructions in Tanga and an observation tower at Ladheke, both opposite Ferozepur, and two bunkers in Toti area around 800 metres from the international border.
