Jammu and Kashmir: Tough times ahead as local militants outnumber Pakistani

The emerging new trend in Kashmir of local militants outnumbering the foreign militants (read Pakistani) has increased the worries of the security agencies and they are bracing up for a fresh spate of violence in the valley. According to census of active militants done by the J&K police, for the first time in last one decade, the local boys have swelled up the ranks of militants constituting a whopping 62 per cent of the total militants present in the valley.

Of the 142 militants are presently operating in south, central and north region of Kashmir Valley, 88 of them are local and 54 foreign nationals, mostly from Pakistan. What has created problems for the security agencies is that the new young militants are not relying on the "old overground workers" anymore, which means that it would not be easy for the security agencies to apprehend them. "The new trend reveals that terrorist cadres have influenced the impressionable youth, a significant number have gone missing in recent past," the report says.

Hizb-ul-Mujahideen (HuM) tops the list with most number of recruits in the valley, relegating Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) to the second place. 

HuM, sources said, is planning to revamp its earlier command structure. It has done away with the structure to escape the focus on security agencies on its commanders. 

Among the three regions, south Kashmir tops the list with 60 militants presently active in the region, all local youths and most with Hizb-ul Mujahideen (HuM). The data says that 33 youths have joined militants this year alone, of whom 30 are from south Kashmir. Most of the new recruitments have been happening in the restive Tral township of Pulwama district where a new base of Hizb commandeered by a young Burhan Muzaffar Wani, 21, has gained strength over the last four years.

Incidentally, Burhan joined HuM during the 2010 civil unrest has emerged as the face of modern militancy in Kashmir. 

The report says 44 youths had gone missing from south Kashmir in the past six months and 30 of them have joined militant ranks. Of the rest, 12 returned and the police have no information about two. Out of 69 militants operating in north Kashmir comprising of Kupwara, Handwara, Sopore and Baramulla districts, 25 are locals. The highest number of foreign militants, 44, are operating from these places. 

In all 38 youths had gone missing from this region and three joined militants, 29 returned and there is no information about the remaining 6. The lowest concentration of militants is in central Kashmir -- Srinagar, Budgam and Ganderbal districts -- where 13 militants are operating of which 10 are foreign.