Kill numbers of militants in Kashmir fall by nearly half

For some years now, Kashmir militancy had become a tragic game of numbers. But there are positive indications in the slide of the deadly figures, reports senior journalist Sanjib Kr Baruah.

New Delhi:One swallow may not a summer make but there is a possibility that the militancy situation in Kashmir may be calming down. The number of militants gunned down by the security forces in Kashmir as of Wednesday (July 7) stood at 66, a fall of about 48 per cent, compared to 127 in the corresponding period last year, data provided by the security establishment reveals. For the whole of 2020, 215 militants were killed taking the total number of militants killed by the security forces in Kashmir to 937 in the last five years. For 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016, the death numbers were 153, 215, 213, and 141.

According to the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), the total number of militants killed in Kashmir ever since the beginning of militancy in 1989 is at least 25,315. One main factor for the falling numbers this year may be the ongoing ceasefire with Pakistan since February 24 this year, proving the fact that complicity of the Pakistani army in aiding infiltrators cross over to India was vital. Ceasefire violations or CFVs are usually undertaken by the Pakistan army to aid intruding militants by providing covering fire.

The agreement was signed as both the countries were keen to avoid the severe collateral damage among civilians that was taking place due to continuous and heavy shelling. Interestingly, not a single shot has been exchanged across the Line of Control (LoC) by India and Pakistan after the suddenly-announced February 24 ceasefire. The number of CFVs in 2021 till the February 24 agreement was 592. On July 1 last year, the number of CFVs stood at 2,301.

Read:Hybrid militants: The new challenge for security forces in Kashmir

On the other hand, the number of CFVs was 971 in 2017, 1,629 in 2018, 3,168 in 2019, which jumped to 5,133 instances in 2020. Another bright aspect is the possible slackening of recruitment. Till June 1, at least 58 youth had joined the various militant ‘tanzeems’ or outfits, a 28 percent reduction from 81 from the same period last year.

In the five years before that, the militant recruitment numbers were 166 in 2020, 119 in 2019, 191 in 2018, 128 in 2017 and 88 in 2016. But this ‘official’ figure doesn’t take into account the number of ‘missing’ youth who potentially may have possibly added to the militant ranks. There is a possibility that the actual numbers therefore may be much higher. There has also been a reduction in the number of militancy-initiated incidents which was recorded at 57 on July 1, 2021 as against 68 on July 1, 2020, indicating a 16 percent reduction.

Read:Four militants killed in separate gunbattles in J-K's Pulwama, Kulgam districts