Srinagar, Apr 26: Stating that militancy was not over in Kashmir, the Inspector General of Police Kashmir range, SM Sahai said no militants were present within the Srinagar city boundaries.
“There is no militancy in Srinagar,” Sahai told reporters on the sidelines of the wreath laying ceremony of the two policemen who were killed in an ambush at Nowgam bypass on the city outskirts on Monday night.
“But it does not mean militancy is over in Kashmir. The war is on. Its there from the past 20 years,” he said.
IGP said the militants come from peripheral areas of the city, attack, and then go back to their designated hide-outs deep in the countryside.
“We have been successful to foil their attempts. The foreshore encounter where a Jaish commander was killed is an example,” Sahai added.
“The militants would surely make concerted efforts to attack the security forces,” he added.
 Sahai said the frequency of attacks has, however, considerably declined over the past years.
 On Monday night, unidentified gunmen shot dead two policemen at Nowgam. Sources said the police party was coming from the routine work when they were ambushed by militants equipped with AK 47 rifles. A loud explosion was also heard near the spot. The sources further said the police party was intercepted just 150 yards away from the police station Nowgam.
 The deceased policemen were identified as head Constable Abdul Khaliq of Bandipora and Constable Farooq Ahmed of Pulwama while one more policeman, sustained injuries.
 It has been after several years that militants used medium range weapon (AK 47) to attack the security personnel. Earlier, it they were mostly using pistols or grenades for such attacks.
 “The Nowgam attack in which our two boys laid their lives has been a cause of concern for us,” Sahai said. “It was at 9:30 pm militants ambushed them. They took the cover of darkness to flee from the spot,” he said.
 He said that Nowgam being on the outskirts of Srinagar was ideally chosen by the militants for the attack. “It’s surrounded by fields and woods. The militants disappeared after the attack,” Sahai said.
 Meanwhile, the police said stringent security measures have been taken to avoid any security threat in the wake of Durbar move.
 “We have done our preparation. Proper security measures have been taken to avoid recurrence of such attacks,” Sahai said.

Lastupdate on : Tue, 26 Apr 2011 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Tue, 26 Apr 2011 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00:00 IST