The Hindu : Militants shifting focus to Jammu: Swami

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Thursday, Jul 31, 2003

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Militants shifting focus to Jammu: Swami

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI JULY 30. It appears that militants are shifting their focus from the Kashmir Valley to the Jammu region, the Minister of State for Home, I.D. Swami, informed the Rajya Sabha today.

``Their focus could be on Jammu but the Government is on alert. We are also changing our strategy from time to time,'' the Minister said during question hour.

The Congress member, Ghulam Nabi Azad, wanted to know if the terrorists had shifted their focus to Jammu to avoid incurring the wrath of the Kashmiri people who were happy due to the revival of tourism in the Valley. The Minister said the Government had appointed four task forces in the last 2-3 years to curb the menace in the State. Based on the recommendations of the task force, a Group of Ministers (GoM) took certain decisions that are being implemented.

In a written reply, Mr. Swami said terrorist attacks in May and June this year have declined to 597 as against 681 during the same period last year. As many as 253 terrorists were killed in May-June as against 269 in the corresponding period last year.

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