NEW DELHI: The Army, in collaboration with J&K Police, has stepped-up training of village defence guards (VDGs) to enhance security of local communities in the Jammu region, hit by a surge in terrorism over the last several months, ahead of the state assembly elections from Sept 18 to Oct 1.
Around 600 villagers are currently undergoing intensive training in firing 7.62mm self-loading automatic rifles, squad post drills and minor tactics.This comes after around 500 villagers were earlier trained in the Rajouri area and another 85-90 in the Doda and Kishtwar regions, Army sources said on Friday.
The Army initiative, undertaken at the request of the J&K police, aims to equip the civilians with the skills necessary to protect their villages from terrorist threats, which will boost the region’s overall security framework.
“This training is being conducted at the unit level, in proximity to their respective villages, ensuring that the VDGs can quickly apply their skills in real-world scenarios. It is meticulously structured, with each VDG unit receiving a minimum of three-day training,” a source said.
The programme is led by the Army’s formations deployed in the region, with additional support from instructors and training aids from the Corps Battle School in Sarol. “This collaboration ensures the VDGs receive instruction from highly-skilled personnel,” the source said.
Apart from the training, the 7.62 automatic rifles are also being issued to the VDGs through a coordinated effort between the Army’s ordnance depots and the J&K Police. “Earlier, the VDGs had the very old .303 bolt-action rifles,” the source said.
Parallelly, the Army and other security forces are strengthening the counter-infiltration and counter-terror grids as well as the ground intelligence network in the Jammu region.
The spike in terrorist activities in the twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch has spread inwards to other places like Reasi, Doda, Bhaderwah, Kathua and Udhampur. At least 55-60 terrorists, mainly from the Jaish-e-Mohammed, are active in the Jammu region after having successfully infiltrated across the international boundary and the line of control, as per estimates.
The Centre recently sent additional forces to the Jammu region, which includes over 3,000 Army soldiers and around 500 Para-Special Forces commandos, apart from additional battalions of the central armed police forces, as reported by TOI earlier.
Around 600 villagers are currently undergoing intensive training in firing 7.62mm self-loading automatic rifles, squad post drills and minor tactics.This comes after around 500 villagers were earlier trained in the Rajouri area and another 85-90 in the Doda and Kishtwar regions, Army sources said on Friday.
The Army initiative, undertaken at the request of the J&K police, aims to equip the civilians with the skills necessary to protect their villages from terrorist threats, which will boost the region’s overall security framework.
“This training is being conducted at the unit level, in proximity to their respective villages, ensuring that the VDGs can quickly apply their skills in real-world scenarios. It is meticulously structured, with each VDG unit receiving a minimum of three-day training,” a source said.
The programme is led by the Army’s formations deployed in the region, with additional support from instructors and training aids from the Corps Battle School in Sarol. “This collaboration ensures the VDGs receive instruction from highly-skilled personnel,” the source said.
Apart from the training, the 7.62 automatic rifles are also being issued to the VDGs through a coordinated effort between the Army’s ordnance depots and the J&K Police. “Earlier, the VDGs had the very old .303 bolt-action rifles,” the source said.
Parallelly, the Army and other security forces are strengthening the counter-infiltration and counter-terror grids as well as the ground intelligence network in the Jammu region.
The spike in terrorist activities in the twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch has spread inwards to other places like Reasi, Doda, Bhaderwah, Kathua and Udhampur. At least 55-60 terrorists, mainly from the Jaish-e-Mohammed, are active in the Jammu region after having successfully infiltrated across the international boundary and the line of control, as per estimates.
The Centre recently sent additional forces to the Jammu region, which includes over 3,000 Army soldiers and around 500 Para-Special Forces commandos, apart from additional battalions of the central armed police forces, as reported by TOI earlier.
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