Bhaderwah, Dec 30: Amid an intensive counter-terrorist operation in the higher reaches of Chenab valley, the Army has also stepped up efforts to strengthen grassroots security by imparting training to Village Defence Guards (VDGs) in Doda district, officials said on Tuesday.

Around 150 VDGs from 17 remote villages along the Doda-Chamba border, including women volunteers, are undergoing intensive training in handling automatic rifles, minor tactics, self-defence, bunker construction and repelling enemy attacks, they said.

The villages are located near the forested and mountainous areas where security forces are currently conducting extensive search operations in view of suspected terrorist movement.

The training is being conducted at Shingini panchayat of Bhalessa, around 90 km from the Doda district headquarters, to equip volunteers with the necessary skills to protect their villages and act as a first line of defence, especially in vulnerable areas, an official said.

He said the move complements the ongoing operation by the Army, police and paramilitary forces in the higher reaches to track down and neutralise the terrorists who had managed to infiltrate into Chenab valley, especially Doda and Kishtwar districts, a couple of years back.

According to officials, the VDGs welcomed the training and the recent upgradation of their weaponry. They expressed gratitude to Union Home Minister Amit Shah for providing self-loading rifles (SLRs), replacing the older .303 rifles, which they said, has significantly boosted their confidence.

“This is a major programme bringing together members from 17 Village Defence Groups. We are being trained in weapon handling, bunker construction and self-defence. Receiving such training at our doorstep is highly appreciable,” Surinder Singh, a VDG member from Shingani, said.

He requested the government to provide more automatic weapons to the members, recalling the frequent terror attacks in the region during the early 1990s.

Another VDG member, Rajesh Kumar Thakur from Gauala village, said the training by the Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police has instilled a sense of confidence.

“Earlier, we only had .303 rifles. After receiving automatic weapons, our confidence has increased, and we now feel capable of defending our villages,” he said.

Thakur also demanded that unpaid VDG members be given an honorarium, adding that the construction of bunkers in villages has helped ease the fear among residents.

Security officials said strengthening VDGs alongside sustained operations in the higher reaches forms a multi-layered security strategy aimed at denying terrorists any support base and ensuring long-term peace in the region.

Jammu, Dec 30: Security forces on Tuesday launched cordon and search operations along border areas and the mountainous hinterland of Poonch and Kishtwar districts of Jammu and Kashmir as part of heightened anti-terror measures, officials said.

Acting on inputs about the presence of two terrorist groups operating in the Doda-Kishtwar forest areas, security forces launched a cordon and search operation in the Keshwan-Chatroo valley after apprehending terrorist movement, they said.

Troops used drones and other aerial surveillance equipment to monitor the area in a bid to track down the terrorists, they added.

According to reports, two groups of Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists, with two to three operatives each, are believed to be present in the area, which has witnessed encounters in the past.

The Romeo Force of the Army also conducted search operations at Khanetar Top along the Indo-Pak border in Poonch and adjoining areas following suspected terrorist movement, officials said, adding that the troops were equipped with aerial surveillance support and sniffer dogs.

Additionally, security forces have intensified vehicle checking along the Pathankot-Jammu-Srinagar national highway in Kathua, Samba, Jammu and Udhampur districts as part of heightened alert ahead of the New Year.

The border security grid too has been further strengthened. The police have activated Village Defence Guards and border police along the Indo-Pak border in view of possible infiltration from across the border, officials said.