New Delhi: Union Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy Tuesday informed the Lok Sabha that 635 militants were killed by security forces in Jammu and Kashmir between 2018 and 2020, while 115 civilians lost their lives in the Union Territory during the period.
Three civilians were also killed in the hinterland due to the militant violence in last three years, he said.
“The government has declared 42 organisations as terrorist organisations and listed their names in the First Schedule of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. Terrorism in India has largely been sponsored from across the border,” he said in a written reply to a question.
In response to a separate question, Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said 61 cases of infiltration were reported along the Indo-Pakistan border in last two years, 1,045 infiltrations along the Indo-Bangladesh border and 63 along the Indo-Nepal border.
The Centre also said that militancy related violence in Jammu and Kashmir has reduced significantly after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019 and cited a decline in incidents in the Union Territory in 2020 in comparison to 2019.
Reddy said in the Lok Sabha that 244 militancy incidents were reported in Jammu and Kashmir in 2020 in comparison to 594 in 2019, while 221 militants were killed in 2020 in comparison to 157 in 2019.
Till February 2021, 15 militancy incidents occurred in the Union Territory in which eight militants were killed, he said in a written reply.
The minister said 33 security personnel and six civilians were killed in Jammu and Kashmir in 2020 and 27 security personnel and five civilians were killed in 2019.
“After the abrogation of Article 370, the number of terrorist incidents in Jammu and Kashmir has reduced significantly,” he said.
Reddy said the central government has adopted a policy of zero tolerance towards terrorism and has taken various measures, such as strengthening of security apparatus, strict enforcement of law against anti-national elements, intensified cordon and search operations to effectively deal with the challenges posed by the militant organisations.
The security forces also keep a close watch on persons who attempt to provide support to militants and initiate action against them, he said.
