Q. During the ongoing actions to stop this Coronavirus if any terrorist activity takes place in any city then what steps can the government take to deal with any such terrorist activity? Are the intelligence agencies/security establishment of our country ready for this?
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Replied by Anurag Sharma

During the period of lockdown or Janta Curfew due to pandemic caused by Wuhan virus aka Coronavirus, no significant terrorist activity has taken place in India. However, counter-terrorism operations in the State of Jammu and Kashmir and counter-insurgency operations to tackle Maoist activities have not been affected due to lockdown. As a precautionary measure, various government agencies, jointly with civic bodies, are spreading the public message to keep safe and follow the instructions during the lockdown period. For example, a civil society— ‘Nagarika Sachetana Manch’ has taken steps to make locals stay away from Maoists. In Rayagada district in Odisha it has informed the villagers not to contact the Maoist cadre as they could be infected with the virus.

No doubt, India’s intelligence fraternity is well prepared and agile to act upon any conspiracy which led to a terrorist attack. Recently, on 01 April [1], the intelligence reports warned about infiltration attempts by terrorists, with support of Pakistan’s ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence), in order to carry out terrorist attacks in India during the lockdown. Swiftly acting upon the intelligence inputs, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has forwarded the alerts to the BSF (Border Security Force) to maintain “extra-high” vigil along the frontiers.

Targeting the civilian population to spread fear, on 01 April, unidentified terrorists killed two civilians in Damhal Hajipora area in Kulgam district of J&K. On 02 April, four terrorists were eliminated by the security forces during the infiltration on the Line of Control (LoC) in Balakote sector in Mendhar Tehsil (revenue unit) in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). On the same day, terrorists killed a civilian after barging into the residence of Mohammad Saleem Dar in Lakirpora in Anantnag. The security forces are also tackling the Maoist insurgency in affected areas. On 31 March, the security forces killed a Maoist— Dineshwar Oraon in a gun-battle in Lohargada district in Jharkhand.

Date : 08/04/2020
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