Although alert troops foiled the nefarious designs of the enemy on Sunday evening, tension flared up in several parts of the Jammu province after Pakistani drones were spotted intruding into multiple forward areas near the International Border (IB) and the Line of Control (LoC) in Samba, Rajouri, and Poonch districts.
An eerie silence prevails in areas adjoining the IB and the LoC, while fear has gripped border residents due to Pakistan's renewed activities.
"After Operation Sindoor, this is the first time Pakistani drones have been spotted in our area. This is a warning signal because Pakistan has once again started its activities along the border," Ravinder Singh, a resident of Bainglarh village in Samba district, told The International Business Times over the phone.
Recalling the Sunday evening incident, Singh said that several Pakistani drones hovered on the Indian side of the border for a few minutes. "Throughout the night, villagers kept watching activities from across the border," he said, adding that his village is located just a stone's throw from the IB.
Reports said that when Indian forces opened fire to bring down a drone in Nowshera, Rajouri, the Pakistani Army retaliated by targeting Indian positions. Officials confirmed the drone intrusion, but there has been no official or military confirmation of Pakistani firing.
An official stated that all the drones entered Indian airspace from the Pakistani side and returned after hovering within Indian territory for a few minutes.
Sources said the drones intruded near Baba Khori and Ganya villages, adjacent to the LoC in the Nowshera sector of Rajouri. Indian Army personnel opened fire from both villages to bring down the drone. Despite this, it continued to hover over Indian territory, prompting the army to activate its anti-drone system and fire additional shots. The drone eventually crossed back into Pakistani territory. Meanwhile, the Pakistani Army opened fire, targeting Indian positions.
Sources said the Pakistani side continued firing for about 10 minutes. A bullet struck the tin shed of a house belonging to a resident of Ganya village. No one was injured. Ganya village is located about one and a half kilometers from the Zero Line. An Indian Army post is also situated a short distance from the house where the bullet landed, and this post was also targeted.
Meanwhile, another drone was spotted in Khabbar village in Tarayat, Rajouri. An official said the drone, equipped with a flashing light, came from Dharamsal village in Kalakot and continued moving towards Bharakh village. Security forces have launched a massive search operation after tracking the drones' movements. Following these suspicious activities, ground security was immediately tightened.
People in Poonch also recorded the incident on camera. A drone was spotted at around 6:25 pm in the Mankot sector along the LoC in Poonch district. Several residents recorded the incident on their mobile phones. The drone was flying at a high altitude.
Drone hovered for three minutes in Samba
A drone with a blinking light hovered over Chak Babaral village in the Ramgarh sector of Samba district on Friday evening. According to eyewitnesses, the drone remained in Indian territory for about two to three minutes before returning to Pakistan. Upon receiving the information, security agencies and the Border Security Force were alerted, and surveillance was intensified across the area. At present, no weapons or suspicious material have been reported to have been dropped. An alert has been issued in the border belt.
Third drone intrusion incident in three days
This is the third incident of Pakistani drone intrusion in the Jammu division in the past three days. On Friday night, security forces recovered weapons dropped by a drone in Palura village near Ghagwal in Samba. The recovery included two pistols, three magazines, 16 rounds, and a grenade.
Earlier on Friday, a spy drone equipped with 12 cameras was recovered in RS Pura in Jammu district. Additionally, a suspicious pigeon was captured in Kharah village in the Akhnoor sector. Rings on its claws bore the inscriptions "Rehmat Sarkar" and "Rizwan 2025."
