MEHDHAR/JAMMU, Mar 7: Security forces on Saturday safely defused a live mortar shell found in a forward village near the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district, officials said.
The unexploded shell was spotted by a border resident lying in a secluded area of Brari village in the Sawjian sector, who immediately informed the Army unit and the local police post, they said.
Following the alert, a bomb disposal squad rushed to the spot and safely defused the mortar shell without causing any damage, officials added.
According to officials, the shell was apparently fired from across the border earlier but had remained unexploded.
They said the recovery of such mortar shells in forward areas is a routine occurrence, as ordnance fired during ceasefire violations often remains buried or undetected for long periods before being discovered.
Officials added that unexploded ordnance poses a serious risk to civilians living in border areas. Security forces and bomb disposal teams are frequently called to secure such sites and safely dispose of the shells to prevent any untoward incident. (Agencies)
