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Srinagar: Security agencies have warned of major terrorist offensives in Doda, Rajouri and Poonch areas of Jammu region and Shopian area of Kashmir Valley as more than 90 per cent of terrorists hiding in Hil Kaka region are understood to have fled to these regions to escape Army's Operation "Sarp Vinash".

According to sources in the Home Ministry, Intelligence agencies have submitted a report stating that several militants belonging to Pakistan-based outfits like Lashkar-e- Toiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed, Jamiat-ul-Mujahideen and Hizbul Mujahideen escaped from Hil Kaka following the Army attack and fled to nearby Darhal, Thana Mandi in Rajouri and areas of Doda in Jammu region and to Shopian area in Kashmir Valley.

The report confirmed that only 28 militants had been killed during the entire Operation "Sarp Vinash" despite claims by the Army authorities that over 100 militants had been killed during April and May 2003.

The data available with Jammu and Kashmir Police, which is informed by the Army authorities after every encounter with militants, also showed that 28 militants were eliminated, which included 14 militants killed by Nine Para Army unit on April 22.

It said that majority of militants had sneaked into neighbouring places in Jammu and Kashmir and that the Army should widen the scope of its Operation Sarp Vinash to counter those elements.

The Army, which had not fully appreciated the earlier messages of the Intelligence agencies, has now been asked to go after the militants who had sneaked into the neighbouring areas, agencies sources said.

According to the recent intelligence input, a big group of militants armed with sophisticated weapons was seen moving towards the Doda region and the information had already been shared with the Romeo Force, a counter insurgency unit of Army in this region.

The intelligence agencies have also sounded an alarm for Army units located in Shopian area of Kashmir Valley as some splinter groups from Hil Kaka had taken refuge in this area, the sources said.

During the Operation Hil Kaka, the Army was also not able to find any big haul of weaponry as the intelligence agencies suspect that majority of it had been taken out of the area to other safe places in Thana Mandi and Darhal forest areas of Rajouri.

During the period of April 22 to May 27, four Pika-type machine guns, nine assault rifles, one sniper rifle, five pistols, one shot gun, one mortar, three mobile phones and a satellite phone were recovered from the Hil Kaka area, the sources said.

The sources said besides this 10 wireless sets, four first aid boxes, 27 blankets, 30 cooking utensils, 57 mat sheets and 355 kilograms of food grains were recovered by various Army units including Nine Para, 15 Gharwal, 2/4 Gorkha and 20 Rashtriya Rifles.

Intelligence agencies had been warning of concentration in the area for long and had even provided with general as well as specific intelligence about the movement of militants in the Hil Kaka area.

Immediately after the Nadimarg massacre in Pulwama district of South Kashmir, the intelligence agencies had again raised the issue of concentration of militants in places like Hil Kaka, Shopian and Lolab forest in Kashmir Valley at a meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security where these places were termed to be under complete control of militants.

However, Army authorities had taken objection to this and promised a sustained and concentrated operation to flush out militants from these areas.

Meanwhile, as the Army was clearing Hil Kaka area in Surankote district, security agencies were now pressing for similar operations in other areas of the insurgency-hit state.

The surgical operations were also needed for higher reaches in Kupwara and upper Lolab, where the agencies suspect presence of a large number of militants, especially foreign mercenaries, the sources said.

PTI