Official sources said that six people including five non-locals and a local doctor were killed and four others injured when terrorists attacked a private company’s labourer camp in the Gagangier area of Ganderbal district.
Earlier, three non-locals had been killed, but reports now confirm that five non-locals including two officials of the private company and three labourers and a local doctor were killed in this terrorist attack that took place around 8.15 pm today.
Gagangier is around 74 Kms from Srinagar city.
The injured were taken to a sub-district hospital in Kangan town from where the critically injured were shifted to SKIMS hospital in Srinagar city.
The private company is engaged in building a tunnel from the Gagangier area to the Sonamarg tourist resort to make the Srinagar-Sonamarg an all-weather road.
“Army and police have surrounded the area and an operation has been started to trace the terrorists,” officials said.
Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari has also condemned the attack saying, “I strongly condemn the horrific terror attack on innocent labourers in Gagangir, Sonamarg in Jammu and Kashmir, who were engaged in a vital infrastructure project.
“I offer my humble tribute to the martyred labourers and extend my deepest condolences to their families during this difficult hour. My thoughts and prayers are with the injured for a swift and full recovery”.
J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said in his second X-post comment today evening: “The casualty figure from the Gagangir attack is not final as there are a number of injured labourers, both local & non-local. Praying that the injured make a full recovery as the more seriously injured are being referred to SKIMS, Srinagar.”
Earlier, Omar had said: “Very sad news of a dastardly & cowardly attack on non-local labourers at Gagangir in Sonamarg region. These people were working on a key infrastructure project in the area. 2 have been killed & 2-3 more have been injured in this militant attack. I strongly condemn this attack on unarmed innocent people & send my condolences to their loved ones.”
Two days back terrorists killed a non-local Bihar resident, Ashok Chouhan in the Zainpora area of the Shopian district.
The terrorists especially hardcore foreign mercenaries have carried some hit-and-run attacks on the army, other security forces and civilians in hilly districts of the Jammu division including Poonch, Rajouri, Doda, Kathua, Udhampur and Reasi districts.
Over 4000 trained commandos drawn from the elite Para commando force and those trained in mountain warfare have been deployed in the densely forested areas of these districts to prevent the terrorists from carrying out ambush attacks and then hiding in the difficult forest areas.
In addition to the deployment of the army and the CRPF in these mountainous districts, the police have also issued automatic weapons to the village defence committees (VDCs).
The VDCs are groups of civilians trained to handle weapons to protect their villages and families from terrorists in remote, inaccessible areas of the Jammu division.
--IANS
