How Indian Army saved the Pride of Pampore

The Jammu and Kashmir Entrepreneur Development Institute (EDI) - the Pride of Pampore - has been hit twice by terror since February 2016 - first on February 21, when two terrorists hit a CRPF bus, killed two personnel and entered the premises. They permitted the civilians inside the building, including Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist Syed Salahuddin's son, to leave the premises. The army was tasked with clearing the building - the tallest in the area and a symbol of Kashmir standing tall on its feet.

Pampore has been frequently targeted by terrorists in the past few months owing to its prime location as the gateway to not only south Kashmir - the hotbed for infiltrators - but also Srinagar. In the aftermath of the attacks, the Jammu and Kashmir police has decided to cordon the EDI.

The building is the hub of skill development and draws budding talent from across the state of Jammu and Kashmir. It symbolises the future of the young generation in Kashmir - learning new skills and developing their entrepreneurship abilities. Therefore, it is clearly an eyesore for Pakistan, its Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), the terrorists and their proxies in J&K.

With its proxies among the separatists and their hartal calendar, Pakistan has sought to ensure schools remain shut and young Kashmiri students uneducated. The plan is to keep Kashmir's next generation illiterate so that they can be controlled by the separatists and fundamentalists. But the Valley is fighting back. The rich send their children to Jammu and Delhi for education, whilst the poor are suffering, yet want to study.

The February army operation succeeded in killing both the terrorists, but victory came at an unbearable cost - two bright young captains and one non-commissioned officer of the special forces were killed during combat.

All three heroes - Captain Tushar Mahajan of 9 Para Special Forces, Captain Pawan Kumar of 10 Para Special Forces as well as Lance Naik Om Prakash - were experienced young combatants. But the pressure to clear the building forced an early intervention. The media glare, top commanders complain, was immense: wall-to-wall coverage on TV with questions being asked about the "delay in closure of Ops" were adding to the stress. Under pressure, the commanders on ground sought an early closure - add to this the anti-India slogans being chanted from across the Jhelum river.

The army had sought the enforcement of a two-kilometre tight cordon around the area of operations; in February, however, it was not put into place. Reinforcements were subjected to stone pelting. It was a different time in the Valley. The brave soldiers went into the building from multiple sides - without adequate preparation and appreciation of where the terrorists were holed up.

Indian Army executed Pampore encounter with perfection 

This time, however, the story was different - the Army was confident there were no hostages inside the premises and first cordoned the building and sealed the area. Given the situation in the Valley, no stone pelting and sloganeering was permitted. Even in the Valley the people know when the Army means business - they know what is in their interest. And this time the forces left no room for doubt.

After surrounding the building - the Army made one thing very clear - they were willing to tire the terrorists out. From Day 1, the word went out - this would not be an early operation. There would be no storming the building till the time the commander on ground thought it fit to enter. There was no pressure from either the generals in the superior headquarters or the civilian leadership.

The Army first drew fire to know where the terrorists were lodged. Human intelligence inputs seemed to indicate there were two terrorists, but the army still factored in the presence of at least two more. They fired at the glass windows to get a better look inside. Technological aides were deployed to know more about movement of terrorists inside.

The terrorists set one part of the building on fire hoping it would camouflage them, but it helped the Army restrict them. For two days, the army pounded the building using an assortment of small arms and grenades. At one point of time, the uninformed political quarters debated bringing the building down. But the Army would have none of it even though it is standard operating procedure in some instances.

They wanted to save the Pride of Pampore. The six-storied building has 10 rooms and 10 toilets on each floor, plus the attic. Each room had to be cleared with the standard drill: lob a stun grenade, fire, enter fire, check every nook and cranny and declare it clear. Several teams moved in and cleared the EDI room by room, floor by floor.

The Army succeeded in ensuring there was no casualty and the Pride of Pampore secured.

Now it is for the Mehbooba Mufti government to have the building and the institute back on their feet and secure them to prevent terrorists from entering the premises again. There is apprehension of local support to terrorists - they must be identified too.

The Army is credited with smoking out the evil of terror. That practice of burning the evil must continue.