India and Pakistan have exchanged artillery fire in the disputed Kashmir region forcing hundreds of people to flee, police in Jammu and Kashmir said, raising fresh doubts about a 15-year-old ceasefire between the nuclear-armed rivals in the area.

It was not clear what triggered the latest fighting on Saturday in the Uri sector on the so-called Line of Control (LoC) that divides the mostly Muslim Himalayan region.

But tension has been running high since an attack on an Indian army camp in Kashmir this month in which six soldiers were killed.

India blamed Pakistan for the attack and said it would make its rival pay for the &quot;misadventure&quot;.

Police superintendent Imtiaz Hussain said artillery shells fired by the Pakistan army fell in the Uri area and hundreds of villagers had fled from their homes.

Indian forces returned artillery fire, an Indian officer said, the first time the heavy guns had been used since a 2003 ceasefire along the disputed frontier.

The two armies have been exchanging intermittent small-arms and mortar fire over the past couple of years as ties deteriorated.

There was no immediate comment from Pakistan.

Hussain said Pakistani authorities made announcements from a mosque advising villagers living close to the LoC on the Indian side to flee, saying the situation was bad.

About 700 people were sheltering at school in Uri, he said.

India and Pakistan have twice gone to war over Kashmir since independence from Britain in 1947.

The neighbours both claim the region in full but rule it in part.

India accuses Pakistan of orchestrating a separatist revolt in Indian-controlled Kashmir.

Muslim Pakistan denies giving material support to the fighters and calls for talks to resolve what it regards as the core disagreement between it and India.

But tension has been running high since an attack on an Indian army camp in Kashmir this month in which six soldiers were killed.

India and Pakistan have exchanged artillery fire in the disputed Kashmir region forcing hundreds of people to flee, police in Jammu and Kashmir said, raising fresh doubts about a 15-year-old ceasefire between the nuclear-armed rivals in the area. It was not clear what triggered the latest fighting on Saturday in the Uri sector on the so-called Line of Control (LoC) that divides the mostly Muslim Himalayan region. But tension has been running high since an attack on an Indian army camp in Kashmir this month in which six soldiers were killed. India blamed Pakistan for the attack and said it would make its rival pay for the "misadventure". Police superintendent Imtiaz Hussain said artillery shells fired by the Pakistan army fell in the Uri area and hundreds of villagers had fled from their homes. Indian forces returned artillery fire, an Indian officer said, the first time the heavy guns had been used since a 2003 ceasefire along the disputed frontier. The two armies have been exchanging intermittent small-arms and mortar fire over the past couple of years as ties deteriorated. There was no immediate comment from Pakistan. Hussain said Pakistani authorities made announcements from a mosque advising villagers living close to the LoC on the Indian side to flee, saying the situation was bad. About 700 people were sheltering at school in Uri, he said. India and Pakistan have twice gone to war over Kashmir since independence from Britain in 1947. The neighbours both claim the region in full but rule it in part. India accuses Pakistan of orchestrating a separatist revolt in Indian-controlled Kashmir. Muslim Pakistan denies giving material support to the fighters and calls for talks to resolve what it regards as the core disagreement between it and India.

Villagers flee Kashmir front line as India, Pakistan trade artillery fire

The Hurriyat leadership, which is spearheading the separatist movement in Indian Kashmir, has called off strike on Friday in view of the Shivratri festival celebrated by the Hindu population of Kashmir.

Hurriyat spokesman Ayaaz Akbar confirmed this development to ANI and said that there would be no shutdown on Friday.

Ahead of the upcoming festival in the Valley, the police has issued an advisory calling on the locals to cooperate at frisking points.

The people have also been asked not to touch any abandoned object and inform the police if any suspicious person or object is seen in the area.

Last Friday, clashes broke out in Srinagar and despite the stern warning of Army chief Bipin Rawat, Pakistan flags were waved by demonstrators.

This incident took place near Jama Masjid in Srinagar after the prayers were over and people were captured raising Pakistan&#39;s flag and also pelted stones.

(ANI)

Hurriyat spokesman Ayaaz Akbar confirmed this development to ANI and said that there would be no shutdown on Friday

The Hurriyat leadership, which is spearheading the separatist movement in Indian Kashmir, has called off strike on Friday in view of the Shivratri festival celebrated by the Hindu population of Kashmir. Hurriyat spokesman Ayaaz Akbar confirmed this development to ANI and said that there would be no shutdown on Friday. Ahead of the upcoming festival in the Valley, the police has issued an advisory calling on the locals to cooperate at frisking points. The people have also been asked not to touch any abandoned object and inform the police if any suspicious person or object is seen in the area. Last Friday, clashes broke out in Srinagar and despite the stern warning of Army chief Bipin Rawat, Pakistan flags were waved by demonstrators. This incident took place near Jama Masjid in Srinagar after the prayers were over and people were captured raising Pakistan's flag and also pelted stones. (ANI)

India: Hindu festival allays strike in Kashmir for 24 hours

An assessment report of the Centre on the impact of demonetisation on terrorist and Maoist-affected areas has claimed that the note-ban exercise has brought down violence significantly.&nbsp;

The report accessed by WION shows that terrorist violence in Indian Kashmir has reduced by 60 percent post demonetisation. It also claims that only one blast took place in the month of December 2016.

This is that time of the year when terrorist violence in Indian Kashmir usually takes a dip because of winters setting in which makes cross-border infiltration through treacherous terrains difficult. &nbsp;&nbsp;

However, the Indian security forces are keeping a close vigil on terrorist activities and their launch pads across the line of control, the de facto border between Indan Kashmir and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, especially after the Indian army in a special operation conducted surgical strikes on the terrorist launch pads across the border last year. 
&nbsp; 
The note also suggested that stone pelting incidents too have reduced because of unavailability of cash which was in use by local area commanders of the terrorist organisations.&nbsp;

The impact also weakened the overground support base, which has helped military neutralise terrorists in a number of operations. 
&nbsp; 
The note also categorically states that the separatist groups like the All Party Hurriyat Conference (APHC) too made relaxation in their shut down calls which enabled the Jammu and Kashmir Education Board to conduct examinations in November.&nbsp;The examinations saw a record 98 per cent attendance. 
&nbsp; 
The intelligence assessment also shows that the skewed real estate market in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir also witnessed price correction due to demonetisation.&nbsp;

The assessment by the intelligence agencies also pointed out that demonetisation has brought circulation of counterfeit currency in the valley of Kashmir to a standstill. 
&nbsp; 
The assesment report also revealed that various militant groups, insurgents, separatists, criminals, terrorists, sleeper cells in India&#39;s north-east region, which has been affected by insurgency, suffered losses.&nbsp;

It was also brought to the government&rsquo;s notice that many insurgent groups also left the north-east region with the new Indian currency for safety reasons.&nbsp;

But the Centre feels that the impact of demonetisation has been far more pronounced in the areas affected by Maoist violence. 
&nbsp; 
The Indian intelligence agencies noticed that the senior cadre of the CPI(Maoist) in the Bastar division in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh was reportedly in touch with people to convert old notes into new currency.&nbsp;

The Centre has noted that demonetisation has escalated the pressure on CPI(Maoist) to surrender in large numbers before the authorities since November 8th when the Indian Prime Minister announced the demonetisation of higher denomination currency bills.

The note also mentions that demonetisation has also impacted hawala transactions bringing them down by 50 per cent. 
&nbsp; 
The Bhartiya Janata Party, which is ruling at the Centre, has claimed that after demonetisation, the number of incidents of stone pelting by protesters on security forces in Indian Kashmir&nbsp;has come down significantly.

Indian Kashmir had witnessed an unending spiral of violence after Burhan Wani, a terrorist commander, was shot down by security forces in July last year. &nbsp; &nbsp;

(WION)&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

The government report claims that violence in Indian Kashmir has reduced by 60 per cent post demonetisation

An assessment report of the Centre on the impact of demonetisation on terrorist and Maoist-affected areas has claimed that the note-ban exercise has brought down violence significantly. The report accessed by WION shows that terrorist violence in Indian Kashmir has reduced by 60 percent post demonetisation. It also claims that only one blast took place in the month of December 2016. This is that time of the year when terrorist violence in Indian Kashmir usually takes a dip because of winters setting in which makes cross-border infiltration through treacherous terrains difficult. However, the Indian security forces are keeping a close vigil on terrorist activities and their launch pads across the line of control, the de facto border between Indan Kashmir and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, especially after the Indian army in a special operation conducted surgical strikes on the terrorist launch pads across the border last year. The note also suggested that stone pelting incidents too have reduced because of unavailability of cash which was in use by local area commanders of the terrorist organisations. The impact also weakened the overground support base, which has helped military neutralise terrorists in a number of operations. The note also categorically states that the separatist groups like the All Party Hurriyat Conference (APHC) too made relaxation in their shut down calls which enabled the Jammu and Kashmir Education Board to conduct examinations in November. The examinations saw a record 98 per cent attendance. The intelligence assessment also shows that the skewed real estate market in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir also witnessed price correction due to demonetisation. The assessment by the intelligence agencies also pointed out that demonetisation has brought circulation of counterfeit currency in the valley of Kashmir to a standstill. The assesment report also revealed that various militant groups, insurgents, separatists, criminals, terrorists, sleeper cells in India's north-east region, which has been affected by insurgency, suffered losses. It was also brought to the government’s notice that many insurgent groups also left the north-east region with the new Indian currency for safety reasons. But the Centre feels that the impact of demonetisation has been far more pronounced in the areas affected by Maoist violence. The Indian intelligence agencies noticed that the senior cadre of the CPI(Maoist) in the Bastar division in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh was reportedly in touch with people to convert old notes into new currency. The Centre has noted that demonetisation has escalated the pressure on CPI(Maoist) to surrender in large numbers before the authorities since November 8th when the Indian Prime Minister announced the demonetisation of higher denomination currency bills. The note also mentions that demonetisation has also impacted hawala transactions bringing them down by 50 per cent. The Bhartiya Janata Party, which is ruling at the Centre, has claimed that after demonetisation, the number of incidents of stone pelting by protesters on security forces in Indian Kashmir has come down significantly. Indian Kashmir had witnessed an unending spiral of violence after Burhan Wani, a terrorist commander, was shot down by security forces in July last year. (WION)

Demonetisation reduced terrorist and Maoist violence significantly, claims government report

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Villagers flee Kashmir front line as India, Pakistan trade artillery fire

India: Hindu festival allays strike in Kashmir for 24 hours

Demonetisation reduced terrorist and Maoist violence significantly, claims government report