Srinagar: The Army on Wednesday said that a major tragedy was averted after an IED was found and defused in the Langate area of Handwara in frontier Kupwara district.
The IED was found at Wudipora in Langate Handwara.
PRO Defence Col Emraan Mousavi said that a joint operation of the Army and Police was launched on Wednesday morning based on the spotting of a suspicious object with wires astride NH-701 near Langate.
He said that the search parties of the Army and Police were immediately deployed and the area was cordoned by the security forces.
Mousavi said explosive detection canines of the Army were deployed that confirmed the presence of explosives.
He said that a bomb disposal squad of the Army was rushed to the spot to neutralise the IED.
“The bomb disposal squad destroyed the estimated 20 kg IED without any collateral damage,” Mousavi said.
He said that the Handwara-Baramulla highway was an important road for the civilian traffic as well as for the Army and CAPF convoys.
“Security forces with their swift operation have averted a major terror plot by timely neutralisation of the IED. The traffic which was halted on the highway for initial hours was resumed at about 10 am after the area was thoroughly sanitised,” Mousavi said.