Soldier among four injured in Pakistan shelling along LoC in J&K's Poonch

Jammu: Four persons, including a soldier, were injured and three houses suffered damages Monday as Pakistani troops resorted to heavy shelling on forward areas along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district, sparking panic among border residents, officials said.

This is for the fourth consecutive day that Pakistan has violated the ceasefire in the twin districts of Poonch and Rajouri.

Three civilians - Mohammad Sharief Magray, Haniefa Bi and Shoukat Hussain - and an army man, guarding a forward post in Mankote, were injured in the intense shelling, the officials said. They said three houses were damaged in the cross-border shelling which was going on in different sectors of Shahpur, Kerni and Krishna Ghati.

A defence spokesperson said Pakistan violated the ceasefire around 7.40 am by shelling mortars and firing with small arms along the LoC in Shahpur and Kerni sectors of Poonch district. "The Indian Army is retaliating," the spokesperson said.

The officials said panic gripped the residents as Pakistan heavily shelled forward posts and targeted civilian areas at over a dozen places.

Mortar shells have landed in different villages of Qasba, Mankote, Kerni, Guntariyan and Shahpur, forcing the people to stay indoors, they said, adding that all the schools in shelling-hit areas have been closed as a precautionary measure.