Srinagar, Jun 17: Six Army personnel and two civilians were injured when militants triggered an improvised explosive device (IED) fitted in a vehicle near an Army patrol in the south Kashmir’s hit Pulwama Monday, police said.
They said the multi-vehicle patrol of the 44 Rashtriya Rifles was moving on Arihal-Pulwama road when the IED was detonated by the militants, injuring the six personnel travelling in a bullet-and-mine-proof vehicle.
“Six army personnel have sustained injuries in the incident and are stated to be stable. Moreover two civilians also sustained injuries due to this explosion. They were evacuated to hospital by the soldiers and are undergoing treatment,” police said in a statement Monday evening.
PTI, however, reported that nine army personnel were injured in the blast.
The blast, reports said, caused extensive damage to the Army vehicle. Militants also opened fire following the blast, reports said. Officials said the Army personnel also fired in air to “dominate the situation”.
The injured personnel have been admitted to a hospital and all of them were reported to be in stable condition, the officials said.
Srinagar-based defence spokesman Col Rajesh Kalia said it was a “failed attempt” to attack the patrol and except for a “few minor injuries, all troops are safe”.
“A failed attempt was made to attack a mobile vehicle patrol of 44 RR with a vehicle-based IED while the Army patrol was moving in the general area Arihal in district Pulwama today evening,” he said in a statement here.
“Troops are all safe, (except a) few minor injuries,” the defence spokesman said, adding the damage was minimised due to the alertness of the patrol team.
The area has been cordoned off and a search operation is in progress, he said.
The site of the blast is 27 kms from the area where a convoy of vehicles carrying security personnel on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway was attacked by a suicide bomber on February 14 in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed.
Meanwhile, Monday evening militants carried out a grenade attack on a paramilitary CRPF camp in Tral.
Reports said that militants hurled a grenade towards the headquarter of 180 bn CRPF in Tral. The grenade exploded outside the headquarter without causing any damages, officials said.
