HT Correspondent

letterschd@hindustantimes.com

Jammu : A soldier was killed and two more were injured in a suspected Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blast near the Line of Control (LoC) in Pallanwalla area of Akhnoor in Jammu district on Sunday, a defence spokesperson said.

The explosion took place when an Army team was on a routine patrolling duty in the Pallanwalla area, he said.The official identified the deceased soldier as Havaldar Santosh Kumar, a resident of Pura Bhadauria village of Agra in Uttar Pradesh.

Three army personnel suffered injuries in the blast and they were rushed to the army’s Northern Command Hospital in Udhampur. However, one of the personnel succumbed to his injuries in the hospital, the spokesperson said.

The IED is believed to have been planted from across the border and detonated when some army personnel were moving towards a forward post, they said, adding that the condition of one of the injured was stated to be “serious”.

Pak violates truce in Poonch

The Pakistan Army violated ceasefire along the the Line of Control (LoC) in Shahpur sector of Poonch district on Sunday, drawing retaliation from the Indian side.

“Pakistani troops resorted to unprovoked ceasefire violation by intense firing of small arms and shelling with mortars in Shahpur sectors of Poonch district at around 10:50am, the defence spokesperson said.

The exchange of fire between both the armies lasted over an hour.

There was no report of any casualty in the shelling, which has prompted people to take shelter in safe places such as underground bunkers.