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Infiltration continuing: Intelligence agencies

Josy Joseph in New Delhi

Indian army and intelligence agencies insist that cross-border infiltration is continuing, even as the Ministry of External Affairs on Monday evening claimed that it has 'reasons to believe that there is some definite tangible change in the situation'.

According to initial assessment of infiltration levels after the May 27 speech of Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, over 100 terrorists have crossed over into India through the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir.

This is the approximate figure based on intercepts and inputs from border villagers.

The figure was conveyed by agencies under him to Home Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani before he met the United States Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage.

Though Indian army as of now is not ready to put any figures to infiltration in the last one week, they also corroborate the claims of other agencies.

A senior army officer said the Indian army has indications that infiltration is continuing.

"Though radio communications between the terrorists and their contacts in Pakistan has dropped substantially, there are intercepts and indications that infiltration is continuing," an army officer told rediff.com.

The General Officer Commanding 16 Corps, Lt General JBS Yadava corroborated the perception of army headquarters, when he told a national daily on Sunday that it is incorrect to say that infiltration has stopped.

"To us the general perception that infiltration has stopped is incorrect. There is no evidence of the incursions having come down," Yadava was quoted as saying.

A senior intelligence officer in Kashmir Valley told rediff.com: "If body bags are an indication, then there is no let up in violence."

Intelligence agencies have also appraised the government that militant groups have been telling the Pakistan army and their interlocutors in the ISI that they need to beef up their cadres and logistics in the valley urgently 'otherwise Indian forces would butcher our boys'.

There are about 3000 militants at a given point of time in Jammu and Kashmir, according to Indian agencies. In 2001, the army claimed that 2020 militants have been killed, a large number of them in the later part of the year. And in 2002 till now about 450 have been killed.

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