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The helicopter service to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district resumed on Wednesday after being suspended for a week due to the military standoff between India and Pakistan, officials said.

This came a day after flight operations recommenced at 32 airports, including Jammu and Srinagar, following the suspension of hostilities between the two neighbouring nations.

“The helicopter service at the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine resumed this morning after remaining suspended for the past seven days,” an official of the shrine board said, adding pilgrim footfall has also started picking up after witnessing a sharp decline since the beginning of this month.

The battery car service for the pilgrims is also functional, the official said.

Over 30 lakh pilgrims have paid their obeisance at the shrine since January this year as against 94.84 lakh last year, he said and expressed hope that the rush will increase manifold.

“We are happy about the resumption of the helicopter service and the arrangements made by the shrine board,” said Shubam Kumar, a pilgrim from Delhi.

Dramatic footage has emerged of the three terrorists killed in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir’s Awantipora that began early Thursday morning.

In one video one of the terrorists can be seen crouched behind a concrete pillar, with what appears to be an assault rifle in his hand. In another, filmed from further away, the terrorists can be seen huddled inside what seems to a broke-down shed.

All three, who earlier sought refuge in a house, were killed after a joint op by the police and Army that began in the Tral region of Awantipora, which is a sub-district of Pulwama in south Kashmir.

This was the second encounter in Kashmir in the previous 48 hours.

That encounter initially began in Kulgam and then shifted to a forested area in Shopian. Security forces had intercepted the terrorists following confidential information.

The Army Chinar Corps said, “The terrorists have been identified as Asif Ahmed Sheikh, Amir Nazir Wani and Yawar Ahmed Bhat, from whom three AK-series rifles, twelve magazines, three grenades and various other war-like stores have been recovered.”

These encounters follow increased scrutiny and tracking of terrorists’ movements after the Pahalgam terror attack in April, in which 26 people, mostly civilians, were killed.

The attack was claimed by The Resistance Front, a proxy of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba. The Indian government identified four-five terrorists who took part in the attack.

A manhunt to track them down is ongoing.

India responded attack first with a raft of non-military measures, including suspension of some Pak visas and the Indus Waters Treaty, which divides waters of the Indus river system between the two countries and supplies Pak farms with nearly 80 per cent of its irrigation needs.

Then, early on May 7, 15 days after the attack, India unleashed Operation Sindoor, a series of precision air strikes targeting nine terror camps, including four in Pakistan, one of which was the HQ and training base of the Lashkar, a group linked to earlier terror attacks on India.

Pakistan responded with attempted military strikes of its own – a barrage of drones and missiles – but these were efficiently intercepted by India’s air defence system.

Eventually, after four successive nights of drone and missile attacks by Pak and counterstrikes by India, the two sides agreed on a ceasefire facilitated by the United States.

In his address to the nation this week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Operation Sindoor had carved out a new benchmark in India’s fight against terrorism and set up a “new normal”.

he Indian Army in two separate operations successfully neutralised six terrorists within 48 hours in vastly different terrain in Jammu and Kashmir, senior officers told reporters today.

One of the terrorists was involved in the killing of a sarpach in the Union Territory in March.

“Wherever the terrorists hide, we will find them and neutralise them,” Major General Dhananjay Joshi, GOC V Force, told reporters.

He said the army got information on May 12 on the possible presence of a terrorist group in the higher reaches in Kelar.

The next morning, on seeing some movement, the security forces challenged the terrorists but they responded with gunfire, he said, adding the security forces soon neutralised the threat.

The second operation in Tral was conducted in a border village.

“As we were laying a cordon at this village, the terrorists positioned themselves in different houses and fired at us. At this time, the challenge we faced was rescuing the civilian villagers. After this, three terrorists were neutralised. One of the six terrorists neutralised, namely Shahid Kutte, was involved in two major attacks, including an attack on a German tourist. He also had a hand in funding activities,” Major General Joshji said.

In the Tral operation, which took place on difficult terrain, the army shot dead three terrorists, the officers including from the Jammu and Kashmir Police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) said in the briefing today.

In Pulwama, the army received information about three terrorists hiding in a village. The army first evacuated all civilians and launched an operation.

While the Tral operation was on higher ground in a forested region, the Pulwama operation unfolded on relatively flat terrain in the village.

The army said they neutralised three terrorists in the Pulwama village.

The three terrorists killed in Pulwama belonged to Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM). They have been identified as Asif Ahmed Sheikh, Amir Nazir Wani, and Yawar Ahmed Bhat.

The successful anti-terror operations come amid the ongoing Operation Sindoor, which marks a doctrinal change in how India deals with terrorists. India has said it will strike at the heart of terror wherever they are.

A public spat broke out between Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and his predecessor Mehbooba Mufti on social media on Friday over calls for revival of the Tulbul Navigation project after the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty.

Ms Mufti accused Mr Abdullah of adopting “provocative” measures amid ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan. Mr Abdullah, however, alleged that the former Chief Minister was trying to score “cheap publicity points” and “please some people” in Pakistan by opposing the idea.

The Tulbul Navigation project – that seeks to rejuvenate the Jhelum-fed Wular lake in Bandipora district – was launched in 1987 but paused in 2007 amid objections from Pakistan that it violated the Indus Waters Treaty. With India suspending the Treaty on April 23, a day after the Pahalgam terror attack, Mr Abdullah on Thursday called for resumption of work in the project on Wular Lake.

In a post on X, the Chief Minister said that since the water pact with Pakistan has been kept in abeyance, “I wonder if we will be able to resume the project”. 

“The Wular lake in North Kashmir. The civil works you see in the video

The National Conference leader said that if completed, the Tulbul project can help in using the Jhelum river for navigation purposes. “It will give us the advantage of allowing us to use the Jhelum for navigation. It will also improve the power generation of downstream power projects, especially in winter,” he added. 

Under the Indus Waters Treaty governing six common rivers, all the water of the eastern rivers – Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi amounting to around 33 million acre feet (MAF) annually – has been allocated to India for unrestricted use. The waters of western rivers – Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab – amounting to around 135 MAF annually have been assigned largely to Pakistan. 

Ms Mufti, however, launched a scathing attack on Mr Abdullah and labelled his call as “irresponsible and dangerously provocative”. 

The Chief Minister’s call to revive the Tulbul Navigation Project amid tensions between India and Pakistan is “deeply unfortunate”, she said in a post on X. “At a time when both countries have just stepped back from the brink of a full-fledged war – with Jammu and Kashmir bearing the brunt through the loss of innocent lives, widespread destruction and immense suffering – such statements are not only irresponsible but also dangerously provocative,” she said. 

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief said the people of the Union Territory deserve peace as much as anyone else in the country. “Weaponising something as essential and life-giving as water is not only inhumane but also risks internationalising what should remain a bilateral matter,” she said. 

The former Chief Minister’s comments evoked a sharp response from Mr Abdullah, who accused her of attempting to “please some people across the border”.

“Actually what is unfortunate is that with your blind lust to try to score cheap publicity points and please some people sitting across the border, you refuse to acknowledge that the IWT has been one of the biggest historic betrayals of the interests of the people of J&K,” he told his rival.  

“I have always opposed this treaty and I will continue to do so. Opposing a blatantly unfair treaty is in no way, shape, size or form warmongering, it’s about correcting a historic injustice that denied the people of J&K the right to use our water for ourselves,” he added

Time will reveal who seeks to appease whom, Ms Mufti said in response, as the back-and-forth continued. “However, it’s worth recalling that your esteemed grandfather Sheikh Sahab once advocated for accession to Pakistan for over two decades after losing power. But post being reinstated as Chief Minister he suddenly reversed his stance by aligning with India,” she said.

On the contrary, she added, the PDP has consistently upheld its convictions and commitments, unlike the NC whose loyalties have shifted dramatically according to political expediency. 

“We don’t need to stoke tensions or adopt warmongering rhetoric to validate our dedication. Our actions speak for themselves,” she said.

Mr Abdullah told Ms Mufti that she can keep “advocating the interests of anyone you want to & I’ll keep advocating for the interests of the people of J&K to use our own rivers for our own benefit”.

“Is that really the best you can do? Taking cheap shots at a person you yourself have called Kashmir’s tallest leader. I’ll rise above the gutter you want to take this conversation to by keeping the late Mufti Sahib and ‘North Pole South Pole’ out of this,” he said. 

“I’m not going to stop the water, just use more of it for ourselves. Now I think I’ll do some real work & you can keep posting,” he added. 

In a separate post later, the Chief Minister shared a news report from 2016, which quoted Ms Mufti as saying that “Jammu and Kashmir has suffered due to the Indus Waters Treaty”. “Just leaving this out there because “consistency” is in such short supply,” he said.

To this, Ms Mufti clarified that she has never sought scrapping of the water pact. “Such a move could heighten tensions and once again place Jammu and Kashmir at the epicenter of conflict. Our resources like water must be used for life, not as weapons. You invoking IWT now is a reckless ploy to derail the ceasefire,” she said, adding “there’s nothing patriotic about fueling instability”. 

“PDP has consistently called for the return of power projects that NC handed over to NHPC (National Hydroelectric Power Corporation Limited) on a platter at a pittance. Even in the PDP-BJP Agenda of Alliance, it was agreed that two projects would be returned to Jammu & Kashmir to compensate for losses from the Indus Waters Treaty,” she said.

As per the Indus Waters Treaty, signed on September 19, 1960, India has the right to generate hydroelectricity through run of the river projects on the western rivers subject to specific criteria for design and operation. Pakistan has the right to raise objections on the design of Indian hydroelectric projects on western rivers.

Relations between India and Pakistan, that took a nosedive in 2019 with the revocation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, deteriorated further after the Pahalgam terror attack. India responded by launching Operation Sindoor, targeting nine terror bases in Pakistan and PoK. This escalated tensions as it led to strikes and counter-strikes between the two nations. On May 10, India and Pakistan reached an agreement to stop all firing and military action on land, air and sea.

Northern Army Commander Lieutenant General Pratik Sharma visited the Poonch and Naushera districts of Jammu and Kashmir and reviewed the prevailing security situation and operational readiness, the Army said.

“Lt Gen Pratik Sharma, Army Commander Northern Command, visited forward areas of Poonch and Naushera to review the prevailing security situation and operational readiness,” Northern Command, Indian Army posted on X on Friday.

“The Army Commander complimented all ranks for the successful execution of operations & exhorted them to maintain sharp vigilance, adopt proactive measures, and uphold exemplary professionalism at all times,” the post stated

Earlier on Friday, the Northern Army Commander complimented the Chinar Corps for their swift action and precise execution in the joint operation that neutralised three terrorists in Awantipora.

“Lt Gen Pratik Sharma, Army Commander #NorthernCommand, compliments #ChinarCorps for their swift action and precise execution in the joint operation that neutralised three terrorists in #Awantipora. The #IndianArmy stands by its commitment to keeping #JammuKashmir terror-free,” the post stated.

In Operation Nader, three suspected terrorists, Asif Ahmed Sheikh, Amir Nazir Wani and Yawar Ahmed Bhat, were eliminated. Three AK-series rifles, twelve magazines, three grenades and various other war-like stores were recovered too.

Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir’s Director General of Police, Nalin Prabhat, also visited the border areas of Jammu district.

The DGP began his visit from the RS Pura sector and interacted with Border Security Force and Jammu Kashmir Police jawans at various BOPs, including Octroi (Suchetgarh) and Kharkola, as well as the Border Police posts of Baspur Bangla and Agra Chak in the RS Pura sector.

According to a statement, DGP Prabhat acknowledged the role of the police in the recent Indo-Pak conflict. He appreciated officers for their active role in handling the situation in the border villages, which ensured the timely shifting of people from border areas.

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