Terror launch pads, training camps in Pakistan & PoK still 'fully intact': Army officers

In response to the Pahalgam strike, the Army Headquarters in New Delhi, particularly the military operations directorate, monitored the developing situation closely

Despite efforts to curb cross-border terrorism, the terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK) “remains fully intact”, senior Indian Army officers said on Tuesday, following the deadly attack on tourists in Pahalgam, which claimed 28 lives.

According to the officials, terrorist training camps deep inside Pakistan and launch pads near the Line of Control (LoC) remain operational, TOI reported.

Notably, the incident in Kashmir’s Pahalgam came just days after Pakistan Army Chief General Asim Munir reignited communal tensions with provocative rhetoric, calling Kashmir Islamabad’s “jugular vein” and evoking the controversial two-nation theory. “Our stance is absolutely clear — it (Kashmir) was our jugular vein, it will be our jugular vein, we will not forget it. We will not leave our Kashmiri brothers in their struggle,” he said.

In response to the Pahalgam strike, the Army Headquarters in New Delhi, particularly the military operations directorate, monitored the developing situation closely. “Pak-trained terrorists are using other routes to sneak into J&K since strong counter-infiltration grid along the 778-km LoC has made it tough for militants there. Ten infiltration bids were foiled along LoC last year, in which 25 terrorists were killed,” a senior officer said.

Although the Pahalgam region does not have a heavy Army presence, the Rashtriya Rifles, a specialised counter-insurgency unit, quickly dispatched forces to the area after the attack.

Officers suggested that the “low-cost, high impact” nature of the attack was designed to coincide with US Vice President J D Vance’s visit to India and Prime Minister Modi’s trip to Saudi Arabia, with an aim to draw international attention.

With 144 terrorists neutralised in J&K over the past two years, terror outfits like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), United Jihad Council (UJC), and Al Badr are under pressure to assert their presence. These groups, supported by jihadist seminaries and madrassas in Pakistan and PoK, continue to operate freely, the officer said.

“As was evident from Gen Munir’s recent rant against India, Pakistan was not happy with improving situation in J&K, with 2.9 million tourists visiting it last year surpassing previous records,” he said.