JAMMU, Oct 3 - Intensifying action, Pakistan troops today violated ceasefire four times by resorting to heavy mortar shelling and firing on Indian Army posts and civilian areas along LoC in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir, leaving five civilians injured and several shops ablaze.
Reports said in the retaliatory action by the Indian Army, one Pakistani post Twiven1 has been destroyed. The firing and shelling is going on in various areas along the LoC. Pakistan resorted to firing and shelling in Shahpur, Krishnagati, Mandi and Sabzian sectors in Poonch district, officials said.
�Pakistan troops resorted to unprovoked firing in Mandi and Sabzian sectors of Poonch district from 13:45 hours today,� Defence spokesman Col Manish Mehta said. They fired 120 mm, 80 mm mortar bombs, automatic weapons and small arms, he said, adding the exchanges are going on.
Earlier, Pakistani troops violated ceasefire in Poonch using small arms, automatic and mortar bombs (in Shahpur) in Poonch, the spokesman said. �It has appropriately been responded to; we have given them befitting reply. The ceasefire violation is still on,� he said.
In shelling, five people were injured in Shahpur Kerni and Saujian sectors, officials said. The injured, identified as Refeela Bi (18) and Gulam Mohmmad of Shahpur, Shah Begum (35) of Qasba, Hafiza Akhtar (17) of Gangrian and Usma (10), have been hospitalised.
A police officer said that one mortar shell landed in a security force camp in Gangrian in Saujian and it hit oil containers resulting in fire. In the fire several shops were gutted, he said, adding there was no loss of life or injury to any one in the fire.
NSA talks: Meanwhile, Pakistan and India have agreed to reduce tensions after their National Security Advisors spoke over phone, top Pakistani diplomat Sartaj Aziz said in Islamabad today about the first such contact after the Uri attack and India�s retaliatory surgical strikes on terror launch pads across the LoC.
Aziz said a contact was established between India�s NSA Ajit Doval and his Pakistani counterpart Nasir Janjua after recent tension between the two countries on the Line of Control (LoC). They agreed to reduce tensions on the LoC, Aziz said. � PTI
