Uri attack probe: Terrorists locked soldiers in cook house, store

The two buildings, sources said, had been bolted from outside to prevent those inside from escaping before being set on fire, suggesting that the terrorists had a high degree of knowledge about their targets.

Soldiers guard outside the army base which was attacked suspected militants in Uri, Jammu and Kashmir. PTI photo

Officials of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), probing Sunday’s terror attack on the Army camp in Uri which left 18 soldiers dead, believe that the terrorists spent at least a day in the mountains above the brigade headquarters complex, observing their target. The bulk of the fatalities, NIA sources told The Indian Express, took place in a cook-house and store room which burned down during the attack. The two buildings, sources said, had been bolted from outside to prevent those inside from escaping before being set on fire, suggesting that the terrorists had a high degree of knowledge about their targets.

Uri Terrror Attack: What Are PM Modi's 5 Options

 

Launching their attack from the western side of the complex, the four-man assault team first shot a sentry, before three headed towards tents where the soldiers were billeted, and the two buildings. The fourth terrorist moved towards the officers’ mess.Investigation sources said their hopes of proving that the terrorists began their journey in Pakistan now rest on retrieving data from a damaged Global Positioning System (GPS) set recovered from the attack site.National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) engineers have been tasked with attempting to recover data from the Garmin eTrex GPS set, one of two which the terrorists are believed to have used to guide them along their hike, cutting across the Haji Pir pass before reaching Uri.The second GPS set, Army sources said, was too badly damaged during the fighting for data to be recovered.Sources said the NIA had also taken DNA samples and fingerprints of the four terrorists before their bodies were buried Monday. “These will be preserved as evidence, and can be used to determine matches in future if necessary,” sources said.NIA chief Sharad Kumar reached the attack site Tuesday and was briefed on the manner in which the attack was carried out and the evidence recovered from the site so far.But until now, little hard evidence has emerged to link the perpetrators of the terror attack in Uri to specific jihadist groups in Pakistan, NIA officials said.Four Kalashnikov rifles used by the terrorists, and handed over by the military to investigators Monday, bore no markings or insignia of any kind, sources familiar with the ongoing investigation said. There were also no military markings on barrel-fired grenades destroyed by the Army Monday, or on launchers fitted on the Kalashnikovs.Lt General Ranbir Singh, Director General of Military Operations, had told reporters Sunday that the weapons had Pakistan markings. NIA officials, however, underlined that syringes, painkillers, other medications and packets of ready-to-eat food carried by the terrorists bore the markings of several Pakistani manufacturers, linking the perpetrators to that country.“All groups infiltrating from Pakistan carry this kind of kit,” an NIA official said, “so it doesn’t tell us anything very specific.”The ICom-manufactured handset used by the terrorists, intelligence sources said, matched a device recovered from Bahadur Ali, a Pakistani national arrested in July. The device was used to communicate with the Lashkar-e-Taiba’s main control station, code-named Alpha3.An NIA official said the fact that the Uri attackers used a similar set was not, in itself, conclusive evidence that the Lashkar carried out the strike. “ICom is a well-known manufacturer of high-trade tactical wireless equipment,” he said, “and its products are widely used, even by law enforcement.”The NIA, the official said, would be seeking details from ICom on the set that was sold.

ICC can’t run world without India, says BCCI president Anurag Thakur

BCCI chief Anurag Thakur took potshots at ICC’s chief Shashank Manohar even as he unveils bid process for IPL broadcast rights.

BCCI President Anurag Thakur (L) with CEO of BCCI Rahul Johri at the announcement of IPL tender rights. (Source: PTI)
The media session with the BCCI president Anurag Thakur and CEO Rahul Johri was unusually lengthy, lasting nearly 40 minutes including a neat power-point presentation of the new bidding process by Johri. Theoretically, the interaction intended to brief the new bidding procedure for the IPL broadcast and digital rights, but in essence, it turned out to be another dais for Thakur to defend and justify the recent spate of outbursts at the ICC, and specifically its chairman Shashank Manohar.
Going by the recent tirades between them, it was hardly unanticipated that Manohar’s name would pop up some time in the briefing. For the record, not once did Thakur address Manohar by his name, but the latter’s shadow lurked around uneasily in the room and several of his answers and observations were clearly directed at him. It seemed Thakur was comfortable speaking on the perceptible BCCI-ICC stand-off rather than explaining the mundane intricacies of the bidding process, which was mostly left to Johri. The ICC topic, in fact, seemed to banish all the jet lag he had accumulated in the 16-hour flight from Washington, where he was part of a delegation of Indian MPs who had gone to meet their American counterparts.
For the first time in the session, he broke into peels of laughter when someone asked him whether he wanted to helm the ICC. “I have no interest. Jisko ICC jana tha woh bahut pehli hi gaye,” he said, grinning, and not making any effort to hold back the sarcasm. The entire room echoed with laughter, before he repeated that oft-repeated line. “I’m more than happy serving Indian cricket. For me, serving the nation and Indian cricket comes first and foremost.”
The patriotic fervour was soon replaced by proud brag about the indispensability of Indian cricket, laced with another irresistible snide at Manohar. “You say you have no time to look after Indian cricket, because you want to look after the world, but if you don’t think about your country, how can you think about the world? (In cricket), they can’t run the world without India. World cricket is where they are now because of India and to sideline us will be counterproductive,” he emphasised.
Like in another press conference he had addressed last week, he dwelled into the conflicting views of the ICC and BCCI on Tests matches as well as the shelved two-tier system in Tests. “The ICC chairman thinks nobody watches Test cricket between 10 am and 5 pm. And here we are playing 13 Test matches this season and planning a grand celebration for India’s 500th Test. Also, two-tier system will widen the gulf between the countries. So it’s sometimes difficult (to work together),” he said, reiterating that the BCCI is duty-bound to stand by the likes of Bangladesh, West Indies and Zimbabwe.
He offered a simple solution to the ICC, too: “Instead of saying such things, the ICC should ask themselves why people don’t come to watch cricket and how to find the perfect balance between the three formats. That’s exactly what the BCCI is doing. We understand that there are people who watch Test cricket, so you need to have Test matches. There are people, especially the younger ones who watch T20s. So we have T20s. Now we have to think how we can make the T20-watching fans to follow Test cricket,” he asserted.
The indignation at not having a BCCI representative in the ICC financial committee still aches him. He admits it’s incomprehensible for him to find any logic in the decision. “India is where the maximum money comes from. So how can they have a financial committee without any BCCI representative?” he asks, wearing same the perplexed look whenever approached with this question.
It seems like the ICC-BCCI feud has evolved into a personal spitfire between the two. But he quickly clarifies that there’s no estrangement between the boards. “Hamare beech mein man-mutav kuch nahin hain,” he said.
Battles at home
Meanwhile, the BCCI and its president are fighting battles on their home turf as well, especially in dealing with the Lodha committee recommendations, some of which had asphyxiated the board . Though the BCCI has been vehemently opposed several of their recommendations, they have been prompted to toe the line on several others. Like for instance, tweaking the bidding process for IPL television and digital rights.
Whereas previously it involved close-door meetings involving BCCI and IPL functionaries and broadcasters, from now on, the BCCI will open tenders for the next 10-year cycle for television and five-year contract for the digital media. The invitation to tender document will be available from Monday while the last day for receiving bids is October 25 and is open to all non-news broadcasters, who don’t have a litigation with the BCCI.
However, the highest bidder is not automatically guaranteed to win the rights. It depends on the feedback given by the board’s auditing and consulting company, Deloitte, and financial advisers. “Sometimes you get very similar bids and then the financial adviser look at the value of the money. The final definition of the best offer for BCCI has to be left to the financial adviser,” said Johri.
The open tender process, Thakur says, will bring in more transparency and accountability “no nobody can point their finger at the BCCI”. As an after-thought, he added: “It has always been the case with the BCCI. We ensure transparency and accountability in everything. No broadcaster in the past can accuse us of anything. And we have always been open to reforms, even before the Lodha recommendations.”
As for Justice Lodha and his colleagues, he invited them to watch a few domestic matches from the stadium. “Anyway they have been unable to visit the state association offices or BCCI headquarters. Most of the meetings were held in five star hotels. But the domestic season is about to start, and I would request them to come and watch a few matches to see how well the BCCI is organising the biggest domestic tournament in the world,” he said.
There was no evident sarcasm in his tone, but the message was explicitly conveyed–those that have no practical experience of playing or running cricket shouldn’t have too much say in reforming the board.

India weighs response after 17 soldiers killed in Uri by terrorists from Pakistan

Seven of the 20 injured soldiers, who were evacuated in helicopters to the 92 Base Hospital in Srinagar, are said to be in critical condition.
An army soldier guards the army base which was attacked by suspected rebels in Uri, in Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday. (PTI Photo)
In one of the worst terror attacks on the Army in Jammu and Kashmir, 17 Army personnel were killed and 20 left injured early Sunday by four heavily armed terrorists who sneaked into the administrative buildings and store complex of an infantry battalion in Uri, home of the 12 Infantry Brigade, near the Line of Control (LoC).
Seven of the 20 injured soldiers, 18 of whom were evacuated in helicopters to the 92 Base Hospital in Srinagar, are said to be in critical condition.
The four terrorists were gunned down by Army personnel after a three-hour gunbattle, and a combing operation was underway. The Army said its initial findings suggested that the terrorists belonged to Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Muhammad and had come from across the LoC.
Among the dead, 15 soldiers were from the Bihar regiment while two were from the Dogra regiment. The Army said 13-14 casualties had been due to the tents and temporary shelters catching fire. It has not officially put out the list of the dead since some of the bodies are yet to be identified.

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised that the attack will not go unpunished, Army chief General Dalbir Singh flew to Srinagar and then to Uri to take stock.
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar too reached Srinagar where he was briefed by the Army chief. A red alert has been sounded across Kashmir and security measures at all Army installations have been stepped up.
Army sources in J&K said, as per their assessment, the terrorists probably infiltrated in the last two days and familiarised themselves with the area through discreet reconnaissance. It is suspected that some kind of local intelligence was made available, guiding the terrorists to strike where they did at a particular time and place.
The attack site is barely a kilometre away from Uri town. On the other side of the camp is Jabla village, 1.5 km away. Villagers have to pass through highly fortified camps and have to show special border passes to enter the brigade headquarters and its adjacent camps. The encounter spot is barely 2.5 km from the LoC Trade Facilitation Centre at Salamabad.
In New Delhi, Lt General Ranbir Singh, Director General of Military Operations, said: “Initial reports indicate that the slain terrorists belong to Jaish-e-Muhammad tanzeem. Four AK-47 rifles and four under barrel grenade launchers, along with a large number of war-like stores, were recovered from them.”
Since the terrorists had some items with Pakistani markings, the DGMO spoke to his Pakistan Army counterpart and conveyed “our serious concerns on the same”.
A PTI report from Islamabad quoted Pakistan Army spokesman Lt Gen Asim Saleem Bajwa as saying that the DGMOs discussed the situation along the LoC over hotline. “Refuting the unfounded and premature Indian allegation, Pakistan DGMO asked his counterpart to share any actionable intelligence,” Radio Pakistan reported citing an ISPR release.
The terrorists opened fire at the Uri administrative base of 10 Dogra — the infantry battalion is being replaced on the LoC by 6 Bihar as part of the 12 Infantry Brigade — around 5.30 am. Army sources in J&K said the terrorists sneaked into the camp via nallahs at the periphery of the camp. Along with AK-47, the terrorists also used incendiary ammunition which led to some of the tents and temporary accommodation catching fire.
These temporary accommodation had been erected for the incoming 6 Bihar battalion which had moved to Uri last week after completing a three-week pre-induction training at Corps Battle School, Khrew. The battalion had been addressed by the Brigade commander at a Sainik Sammelan Saturday. It was supposed to move for ‘on the job’ training with 10 Dogra, before fully replacing them on the LoC by October.
“The turn-over of units is the most vulnerable time, and all units are advised to be extra careful during this period. It is definitely a lapse but the terrorists also got lucky. There is huge concern at the highest levels that we couldn’t prevent this attack,” a senior Army officer said.
Army sources in J&K said the administrative base of the battalion also had rations and stores for Advanced Winter Stocking (AWS) of its posts at the LoC. These items, which are ferried to the posts before snowfall, are used by soldiers on the far-flung posts to sustain themselves during winter when they are cut-off. Kerosene oil is a major item in AWS and could have aggravated the fire, sources said.
On reports that specific intelligence inputs were available about Sunday’s terror attack, sources in the Udhampur-based Northern Command told The Indian Express: “Broad intelligence inputs were available for various locations in all sectors, including Uri and Mendhar. If you see around the same time last year, these same inputs in similar language were given. It is not correct to suggest that these intelligence inputs were ignored.”
Uri Attack: All Four Terrorists Belonged To Jaish-e-Mohammed, Says DGMO
New Delhi, Sep 18 (ANI): Director General of Military operation Lt. Ranbir Singh on Sunday said that the four terrorists, who attacked the military base in Jammu and Kashmir's Uri, belonged to Pakistan's banned terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). During his briefing to media persons, Singh said that four AK 47 rifles, four Under Barrel Grenade Launchers and other war like stores have been recovered from the militants.

This was the third attack on the Army in north Kashmir in the past one month. Earlier, terrorists had attacked an Army convoy in Baramulla town, killing two soldiers. In another attack at Kralgund, three soldiers were injured.
A senior Army officer posted in the area said the reason for the high casualties was the large number of soldiers present due to the turn-over of battalions and the tents catching fire, as the terrorists fired indiscriminately. “As the troops were all over the camp, the Army and its QRTs (quick reaction teams) moved cautiously to avoid further casualties,’’ he added.
The camp had a designated QRT which reacted swiftly but maximum casualties were inflicted by the terrorists within the first few minutes of the attack. Soldiers within the camp and the QRTs cordoned off the area and engaged the terrorists who were heavily armed. Three terrorists were killed within 15 minutes of the start of firefight while the fourth terrorist was eliminated by 8.30 am.
The Army airlifted its injured to 92 Base Hospital in Srinagar. From morning until afternoon, Army helicopters conducted more than 20 sorties. Civil surgeons assisted the Army in carrying out surgeries at the Army hospital.
Mohammad Iqbal, a resident of Uri town, said: “I woke up to a deafening sound around 5.30 am, followed by two more blasts and firing. I initially thought it was cross-border shelling. Half an hour later, when the firing continued, it was clear that it was an attack.’’
Another resident, Manzoor Ahmad Khawja, said he had to go to Srinagar and wanted to start the journey early in the day. “I was loading my bags in the car when I heard a big blast and then there were two more blasts. I thought it was ceasefire violation and shelling. But when I looked towards the Brigade headquarters, I could see plumes of smoke and there was sound of continuous firing.”

Najeeb Jung visits Delhi hospitals; calls for special care of elderly

New Delhi, Sep 18: Lt Governor Najeeb Jung today visited several hospitals across the city to take stock of their preparedness in dealing with the rising number of chikungunya and dengue cases in the national capital, and stressed on 'special attention' to the elderly.

His visit came a day after the AAP government accused him of adopting a 'casual approach' in dealing with the health crisis in the city.

Delhi is reeling under the viral onslaught of chikungunya and dengue, which have claimed at least 33 lives and affected over 2,800 people.

Jung, accompanied by Delhi Secretary Chandrakar Bharti and other top officials, visited fever clinics, laboratories at Lok Nayak Jaiprakash Hospital, Bara Hindu Rao Hospital and GTB Hospital. The team interacted with patients, doctors, medical superintendents, staff and other visitors to assess the situation.

'He instructed the medical superintendents and doctors to ensure that patients with complications, particularly those who are elderly, should be attended to with greater care,' a statement from the Raj Niwas said.

Jung also directed Delhi health secretary to help provide additional doctors, if required, seeing the surge of patients today.

The AAP government and the Lt Governor had a standoff yesterday after Health Minister Satyendar Jain and Water Minister Kapil Mishra went to meet the LG at his office to discuss the health crisis, but could not meet him as he was not present in his office.

While Jain questioned why Jung did not cut short his US visit 'even by one hour', the LG's office accused the AAP government of 'politicising the issue' when the city was grappling with the health crisis.

Scorpene data leak took place at DCNS office in France:Navy chief Lanba

New Delhi: Primary investigations have found that the Scorpene data leak did not take place in India but at DCNS office in France, said Navy chief Sunil Lanba on Saturday.
The high-level committee probing Scorpene leak will check if any mitigation measures required based on probe report, said the Navy chief.
Earlier, it was reported that India is unlikely to give French naval contractor DCNS a proposed order for three new submarines, in addition to the six it is already building in the country, following the leak of secret data about its capabilities, Indian defence officials said.
Details of the Scorpene submarine were published in the Australian newspaper last month, triggering concerns that it had become vulnerable even before it was ready to enter service.
DCNS had offered to build three more submarines to help India replace its ageing Soviet-era fleet, and had held talks over the past year, two Indian sources said.
That offer will not now be taken up, according to the officials. "We had an agreement for six, and six it will remain," a defence ministry official briefed on the navy's plans told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.
A navy officer said there had been a serious breach of data and the navy's efforts were focused on determining the damage done to the existing submarines. "No order will be signed, nothing is going to happen now," the officer, who is also been briefed on the submarine data leak, said when asked if the government planned to enlarge the order.
DCNS spokesman Emmanuel Gaudez said the company was "stunned" by the information. "The talks are ongoing with the government and our Indian partners. We have not been informed in anyway of such a decision," he said.
India's defence ministry had written to DCNS asking for details about the extent of the leak and how data relating to the Scorpene's intelligence gathering frequencies, diving depth, endurance and weapons specifications had ended up in the public domain, both officials said.
A naval group headed by a three-star admiral is looking at altering some features of the submarine, the first of which began sea trials in May for induction later this year, to minimise any damage.
The remaining five are in various stages of production at state-run Mazgaon Docks shipyard in Mumbai and they were all due to enter service by 2020.

Lenovo ZUK Z2 Plus landing in India on September 22nd

"The ZUK Z2 Plus is expected to be the Indian variant of the ZUK Z2, which sports a 5-inch FHD display, a Snapdragon 820 SoC, and 4GB of RAM"Last month, Lenovo announced that it will be launching a new ZUK-branded smartphone called the ZUK Z2 Plus in India in September. Today, the brand has sent out invites for its launch event in the country, which is scheduled to be held on September 22nd. The Lenovo ZUK Z2 Plus is expected to be an Indian variant of the ZUK Z2, which was unveiled in China back in May. For a recap of the specs, the ZUK Z2 features a 5-inch (12.7cm) full HD display, and is powered by a 2.15GHz quad-core Snapdragon 820 SoC, aided by 4GB of RAM.
It comes with 64GB of built-in memory, 13MP/8MP cameras, 4G LTE, a USB Type-C port, a 3,500mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0 support, Android Marshmallow, and a U-Touch 2.0 fingerprint sensor integrated into the home key. In China, the phone has been priced around Rs 18,000. We will have more details regarding its pricing and availability for India at the launch event next week, so stay tuned.

Delhi’s dengue-chikungunya crisis: AAP ministers meet LG Najeeb Jung

Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung Friday asked Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who is in Finland on an official tour, to return to Delhi in view of the breakout of chikungunya.

Delhi health minister Satyendra Jain and AAP MLA Kapil Mishra outside LG Najeeb Jung’s residence to meet him Saturday morning. (ANI)
After Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung Friday asked Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who is in Finland on an official tour, to return to Delhi in view of the breakout of chikungunya and dengue in the national capital, Health Minister Satyendar Jain and Culture Minister Kapil Mishra reached Jung’s residence to meet him on Saturday. The leaders are reported to have held discussions on controlling the outbreak of the vector borne diseases.
Opposition parties had earlier claimed that Sisodia was “holidaying” in Finland while the capital was facing a serious health crisis. Government officials also contacted Sisodia, who is currently in Finland’s capital Helsinki, to check whether he had received any communication from Raj Niwas, said sources.
“We were told that neither the Deputy Chief Minister nor the Indian Embassy in Helsinki had received any order or communication from the Lt Governor’s office, asking him to come back,” government sources told The Indian Express. “In any case, he was scheduled to return on Sunday, September 18,” said a government official.
In a series of tweets Friday, Sisodia defended his Finland tour, saying it was not a “sin” to study the schooling system of other countries to fix the problems in Delhi’s education system.
With the growing cases of chikungunya in Delhi, Health Minister Satyendar Jain Friday issued orders to the municipal corporations to notify chikungunya as a “dangerous/notifiable” disease under relevant provisions of the Municipal Corporations/Local Bodies Act and Rules.