On May 29, a North Korean drone with a payload of seven magnetic bombs or sticky bombs was shot down by Jammu and Kashmir Police in the Kathua district. As per reports, a Police search party picked up the movement of the drone from the Talli Hariya Chak area under the Rajbagh police station’s jurisdiction.
After tracking it, the police fired and shot it down. The Police said, “On the basis of drone activity observed in the area of Talli Hariya chak under police station Rajbag in district Kathua, Early morning search party of police was being sent regularly in the general area.”
It further added, “Today early morning, the search party observed a North Korean drone coming from the border side and fired at it. The drone was shot down. It has a payload attachment with it which is being screened by the bomb disposal experts.”
A Police spokesperson said, “It has a payload attached with it, and it is being screened by the bomb disposal squad.” The drone was carrying seven magnetic bombs and seven Under Barrel Grenade Launchers (UBGLs). Ramesh Chander Kotwal, SSP Kathua, said, “We got information about drone-like activity in the region. Based on the information, a Police party was searching the area in the morning. During the search, they spotted the drone. When it was hovering at a lower altitude, the Police shot it down.”
A report in Free Press Journal stated that the terror groups lodged in the valley are currently facing a shortage of ammunition. The Pakistani terror groups have developed different ways to supply them with weapons, and drones are among those methods.
There have been multiple sightings of UAVs along the international border and Line of Control, especially in Jammu. Notably, the use of drones is not a new phenomenon, and they have been used by terrorists before in Kathua and Akhnoor, along with the border district of Kupwara in Kashmir.
Keeping the threat in mind, the security agencies in Jammu and Kashmir have expanded the anti-drone system capacities, jamming technology etc., especially around important military installations in the area.