CRPF's armed intervention vehicle to neutralize terrorist hiding in mid-rise building in J&K

During the operation in Awantipora, the terrorists were hiding in a double-storey building and they were neutralised with the help of a CSRV, a senior CRPF official said, writes ETV Bharat's Gautam Debroy.

New Delhi: Armed intervention vehicle also known as the critical situation response vehicle (CSRV) has given a shot in the arm to the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) engaged in counter-terror operation in Jammu and Kashmir. In fact, the killing of Pakistan-backed terrorist Aqib Mustaq Bhat at Awantipora on Tuesday was successful following the use of CSRV.

"Yes, we used CRPV in the operation which helped us neutralise the terrorist who had killed Kashmiri pandit Sanjay Sharma," a senior CRPF official told ETV Bharat in New Delhi. According to the official, the vehicle is useful in targetting terrorists hiding in midrise or double-storey buildings.

The CSRV is a bulletproof vehicle that is very useful for room intervention. There is a crane-like in-built system with a bulletproof bunker in the CSRV which can be used to detect the terrorist hidden in any double-storey building.

During the operation in Awantipora, the terrorists were hiding in a double-storey building. "At present, we have two such vehicles stationed in Jammu and Kashmir. We are also in the process of further modifying the vehicle," the official said adding "this is a make-in-India initiative."

Referring to the Awantipora counter-terror operation, the official said that the killing of the two terrorists would definitely give a sigh of relief to the people affected by terrorism and targeted killing. "It's natural that when we neutralise the terrorist who was the mastermind behind the killing of a Kashmiri pandit, the development could definitely bring a sigh of relief," the official said.

The official, however, added that as the terrorist kill targeted people "it's difficult for the security agencies to stop such killing instantly." With the killing of Aqib Mustaq Bhat, security forces have killed as many as seven Pakistan-backed terrorists to date this year in Jammu and Kashmir. "Among the seven terrorists neutralised in Jammu and Kashmir, four were local and three were foreign terrorists," another CRPF official said.