Jammu, 14 Aug

An Army captain was killed and four terrorists were believed to be gunned down in an ongoing operation in the higher reaches of Jammu region's Doda district on Wednesday, officials said.

A civilian was also injured in the encounter that broke out a day ahead of Independence Day and is the latest in a series of incidents in Jammu region that has witnessed a spike in violence. 

Bullets rang out Wednesday morning in a thickly forested area during a cordon and search operation (CASO) launched by a joint team to track down a group of foreign terrorists hiding in the Shivgarh-Assar belt, officials said.   

Captain Deepak Singh was critically injured during the operations and shifted to a military hospital where he breathed his last, they said.

Four blood-soaked rucksacks were recovered from the site of the exchange of fire, leading officials to believe that four terrorists were also killed. M-4 carbines were also found, the officials said.

Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Anand Jain told reporters around 2 in the afternoon that the operation was still underway in the area. "The operation is going on. Efforts are on."

The Army expressed its deepest condolence on the death of the officer and said the force stands with the bereaved family. All Ranks of White Knight Corps salute the supreme sacrifice of braveheart Captain Deepak Singh, it said.

The terrorists crossed into Doda from a forest near Patnitop in adjacent Udhampur district after a brief exchange of fire between security forces and terrorists there last evening, officials said.

They said security forces established contact with the terrorists around 6 pm in Udhampur on Tuesday. An encounter began about half an hour later and continued intermittently until both sides paused. A cordon was established overnight.

The search was resumed at daylight. At about 7.30 am Wednesday, there was a renewed exchange of fire in Doda where the terrorists fled to, officials said. Security forces engaged terrorists in two encounters on Sunday as well: in the remote forest areas of Nownatta in Kishtwar and the Basantgarh area of Udhampur.

Following these encounters, the terrorists escaped into Doda hills. On 26 June, three terrorists, suspected to be affiliated with the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), were killed in a gunfight on Gandoh area of Doda district.