KL Report
SRINAGAR
The Indian Army is bracing for the final assault in the Keran sector of north Kashmir as the stand-off along the Line of Control (LoC) has entered 13th day on Sunday.
According to reports, a detachment of elite commandos from the army’s para battalion has been inducted for the final push. The thrust of the operation will be to break the supply chain and flush out militants entrenched in the Shala Bhata village close to the LoC.
“The supply chain is the biggest worry. Once this chain is cut, it will take very little time to eliminate the militants, no matter how battle-hardened they are. We want to dry up their supplies. For that reason, these commandos will come in handy. They will choke them to a point where we will be able to knock them off,” said an officer.
The para battalion deployed will be supplemented by the brigade-size troops.
Conventionally, a brigade has four battalions with 1,000 men each.
The Shala Bhata village extends to the other side of the LoC, where the village’s called Pak-Shala. Locals say this village is dotted with Pakistani army posts, overlooking Indian posts.
