Uri terror attack: Home Minister Rajnath Singh reviews security situation

NEW DELHIL: A day after a terror attack killed 17 soldiers in Uri, Home Minister Rajnath Singh today reviewed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir, particularly in the border areas.

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and top officials of the ministries of Home and Defence, Army, paramilitary forces and chiefs of intelligence agencies briefed Singh on the latest ground report in the Kashmir Valley as well as along the Line of Control, official sources said.

Possible strategies to deal with the fresh challenges arising out of the terror attack at the Army Brigade Headquarters, located along the LoC, was also discussed in the meeting, the sources said.

Union Home Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi, who postponed his visit to Srinagar, also attended the meeting.

The Home Minister and the top officials also reviewed the security situation across the country, particular along the western border - from Punjab to Gujarat, the sources said.

Meanwhile, a team of National Investigation Agency is expected to visit Uri to gather leads and other evidence from the terror attack site.

Heavily armed militants suspected to be from Pakistan-based JeM had yesterday stormed an army base in Uri in Kashmir, killing 17 jawans.

India had reacted strongly to the deadliest attack on the Army in Jammu and Kashmir in a quarter-century-old insurgency that sparked an outrage with Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly condemning it.

"We strongly condemn the cowardly terror attack in Uri. I assure the nation that those behind this despicable attack will not go unpunished," Modi had said.

The Home Minister, who had yesterday called an emergency meeting in Delhi, had pointed a finger directly at Pakistan, saying it is a "terrorist state" and should be isolated while BJP leader Ram Madhav said days of strategic restraint are over and suggested that "for one tooth, the complete jaw" should be the policy after the attack.