Grenade explosion in Jammu city creates panic
Arms, ammo seized in Kathua
Jammu: A low-intensity explosion rocked the main bus stand here, with the police suspecting that a grenade was lobbed to target the police station building in the vicinity, police officials said Saturday.
No casualties were reported in the explosion that occurred around midnight, the officials said.
Quoting preliminary investigations, they said it is suspected that the grenade was thrown from a moving vehicle to target the police station building, located near the main entrance of the bus stand.
The grenade fell short of the target and exploded in the air, without causing any damage or casualty, the officials said.
They said police immediately cordoned off the area and an alert was sounded to track the culprits.
This was the second attack on the Jammu bus stand in over seven months.
Earlier on May 24, two policemen and a civilian were injured in a grenade attack on the under-construction bus stand along the B C Road. The accused were subsequently arrested.
Meanwhile, the Army said they have averted a major militant attack with the seizure of a huge cache of arms and ammunition in Kathua district of Jammu division.
Two AK assault rifles, a hand grenade, four magazines with 256 rounds and 59 rounds of sniper ammunition were seized during a joint operation by the Army and local police in the Billawar block early Saturday, a defence spokesman said.
He said the security forces conducted the operation after receiving inputs from military intelligence and this recovery has averted a major strike planned in the Jammu region.
Defence sources said the arms and ammunition were wrapped in a polythene bag and dumped in an isolated area in a village for later use. (PTI)
Kartarpur corridor: Pak sends recommendations to India for visa-free travel of pilgrims
Islamabad: Pakistan has sent recommendations to India for facilitating visa-free travel of Indian Sikh pilgrims through the upcoming Kartarpur corridor, according to a media report here on Saturday.
Islamabad has given a 59-page document with 14 key recommendations to New Delhi, Express News TV reported quoting Pakistani diplomatic officials.
The recommendations call for Indian pilgrims to be given free entry and that facilitation centres and security check-posts to be set up on both sides of the border.
The pilgrims shall be allowed in groups of a minimum of 15 people and Pakistan shall issue special permits to them.
Both countries will compile a record of visitors which will include their names, travel records and other details, according to the recommendations.
The Indian government shall provide a list of pilgrims to Pakistan three days in advance and it will be mandatory for all visitors to bear a standard Indian passport.
The recommendations further say that all visitors shall be required to obtain a security clearance certificate from Indian authorities.
Pakistan shall issue permits to 500 visitors per day and local authorities shall reserve rights to admission.
On November 28, Prime Minister Imran Khan had laid the foundation stone for the corridor on the Pakistani side that will connect GurudwaraDarbar Sahib in Kartarpur to Dera Baba Nanak situated in Indian Punjab’s Gurdaspur.
Two days earlier, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh laid the foundation stone for the corridor on the Indian side of the border.
Pakistan has said it will complete and open the corridor before the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak in November, 2019.
KV News
