Soldiers on Sunday continued hunting for suspected militants for a fourth straight day in the Kandi forests of Kupwara district, officials said, in one of the longest cordon and search operations in the frontier area.
The security forces had cordon off the woods of Portel Nadand Razdan upper reaches of Kandi forests on Thursday morning after receivingintelligence inputs about presence of militants in the area.
“The search is still going on inside the dense forests. Ithas already been 90 hours,” a top police official said.
“We still believe that the militants are hiding inside theforest. Forces have to take care at every step in the forest.”
On Thursday when the searches began suspected militants andsecurity forces briefly exchanged fire.
“From that very time no contact has been established,” thepolice official said.
The intense search operation was started from two sides ofthe forest.
“The army’s 28RR hascalled off their operation from the Lolab Side but 47RR is still on the searchoperation.”
Officials said the operation was carried out jointly byArmy’s 47 RR, 98BN of Central Reserve Police Force and Special Operation Groupof Jammu and Kashmir police at Portel Nad and Razdan Nad, upper reaches ofKandi forests connecting Lolab forests with Nutnussa area of Kupwara district.
The CASO was going on in the area when this report wasfiled.