CAPF companies sent to Kashmir in wake of targeted civilian killings, say officials

New Delhi: Amid a spike in targeted civilian killings by terrorists in Kashmir, over 5,500 additional central armed police forces (CAPFs) personnel have been sent to the Valley, officials said on Tuesday. The fresh companies were moved into the Valley as part of the strategy of ’enhancing security and visibility’ of the forces on the ground following the killings, they said. The Union home ministry had last month directed that about 55 fresh companies of the central forces should be deployed in the Valley in the wake of targeted killings of civilians, the officials said. The last five companies of this lot will be in position by next week, they said. While 25 of these companies are drawn from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), the rest belong to the Border Security Force (BSF). A CAPF company has about 100 personnel. The CRPF is extensively deployed in Jammu and Kashmir for law and order and counter-terrorism duties with around 60 battalions, comprising about 1,000 personnel each, based in Kashmir as regular deployment in the summer capital of Srinagar and other parts of the Valley. The BSF guards the India-Pakistan Line of Control (LoC) under the operational command of the army and some of its units are deployed for law and order duties in the towns too. New bunkers have emerged in the Valley as people were being frisked and vehicles scanned by the central and state police personnel. Even women CRPF personnel have been deployed in areas around Lal Chowk for frisking females. At least 14 people have lost their lives since October 1 in shootings that targeted civilians in Jammu and Kashmir. Five of those killed were labourers from Bihar, while three, including two teachers, belonged to minority communities in Kashmir. Officials said a total of 112 terrorists were killed and 135 apprehended in the Union Territory this year by the CRPF and other security forces during joint operations.