Hole in field triggers search operation near IB in J-K’s Samba; no tunnel found

Jammu, Jul 15: A search operation was launched on Wednesday following the discovery of a suspicious hole in an agricultural field near the International Border (IB) in Samba district of Jammu and Kashmir, triggering fears of a cross-border infiltration tunnel, officials said.

After a detailed inspection, the possibility of a tunnel was ruled out, the officials said.

Following the information, a joint team of the Army, Border Security Force and police rushed to the scene at Jarain village in Ghagwal area and initiated a thorough search and digging operation to verify the nature of the suspicious hole.

The officials said the site was immediately cordoned off, while technical experts examined the suspected opening to determine whether it was linked to a cross-border tunnel used for infiltration of terrorists.

They said the suspected opening was found to be merely a hole in the ground and there was no evidence of any underground tunnel or cross-border infiltration route.

Security forces continue to maintain heightened vigilance along the border, which has witnessed tunnel-digging attempts by Pakistan-based elements in the past, the officials said.

Early this month, the BSF undertook a massive anti-tunnelling operation along the IB to detect and prevent any cross-border infiltration attempts through underground tunnels.

Between 2011 and 2021, the BSF unearthed nearly a dozen cross-border tunnels along the IB in the Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts on different occasions.–(PTI)