LeT, Khalistani outfits procure paragliders; security agencies flag widening aerial threat

Compiled this year, the report cites paragliders alongside drones and RPVs as emerging risks, prompting multi-agency countermeasures ahead of key events.

• Terrorist groups have acquired paragliders, raising security concerns in India.
• Report highlights increased drone and aerial threats along Indo-Pak border.
• Security forces continue operations in Jammu after recent aerial, firing incidents.

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A latest compiled report on aerial activities and threats has warned that terrorist outfits, including Lashkar-e-Taiba and Khalistani extremist groups, have procured paragliders and associated equipment, raising concerns across India’s security grid, according to CNN-News18.

Sources told CNN-News18 that the detailed report was prepared this year to map recent aerial incidents and inputs and to put in place comprehensive, multi-agency and multi-force counter-arrangements.

Drones remain the primary trigger, but threat basket expands

The report assumes significance amid a rise in drone activity along the Indo–Pak border, particularly during night hours. Sources said aerial activities have been noticed and countered primarily along the border, prompting repeated alerts and heightened surveillance in forward areas.

Officials said multiple reports of unauthorised flying objects have also emerged from different parts of the country. The evolving risk from aerial platforms, including drones, remotely piloted vehicles (RPVs), paragliders and hang-gliders, is being factored into existing security arrangements, including preparations for Republic Day 2026, a senior official told CNN-News18 on condition of anonymity.

Global playbook cited; low-cost, low-altitude risks

Sources said the report notes a global trend of drones being used to target dignitaries and other high-value assets, underscoring their role in asymmetric warfare. In that context, the report cited the use of motorised paragliders by Hamas in Israel as a case study of how low-altitude, manned platforms can bypass conventional security systems.

Original context: Security officials say paragliders sit in a regulatory grey zone compared with drones—often quieter, harder to detect on radar, and capable of exploiting terrain—forcing agencies to rethink detection layers built largely around unmanned systems.

Jammu region operations continue amid alerts

Separately, intermittent firing was reported from the Najote forest area of Billawar, about 10 km from the Kamadh nallah in the Kahog forest belt, where security forces exchanged fire with terrorists on January 7, officials said. The suspected terrorists fired a few shots after spotting troop movement; forces retaliated while moving deeper into the forest.

The cordon-and-search operation has been strengthened, and efforts are ongoing to track down the ultras, officials told CNN-News18.

Recent sightings along LoC and IB

Earlier, on January 12, suspected drone-like objects from across the border were spotted at multiple locations along the Line of Control (LoC) and the International Border (IB) in Jammu and Kashmir, prompting the activation of counter-drone measures.