``The ISI is facing the worst situation in its strategy as local militants are not supporting its cause now,'' General Officer Commanding, Victor Force, Major General R K Kaushal told reporters at Aahgam, 52 km from here, yesterday.

He said the ideal situation for the ISI was when there were local militants in the Valley, which encouraged Pakistan to claim that there was a ``state of insurgency indigenously sustained by the people of Kashmir.''

``But now, 70 per cent of the militants in the Valley are foreign mercenaries,'' he added.

Gen Kaushal, however, said it as not possible to give a correct assessment of the number of mercenaries in South Kashmir. Yet, he said, ``Local militants are no longer supporting the Pakistani cause. The ISI has lost confidence in the localmilitants' ability to carry out its nefarious designs.''

The General said people should not be alarmed by the presence of foreign militants, as Indian armed forces were capable of dealing with them. ``Actually, we are happy to deal with foreign militants... The induction of foreign militants into the proxy war in Kashmir has put tremendous pressure on the ISI and for the armed forces, it is a happy situation,'' he said.

Denying that there had been a spurt in militancy in South Kashmir, General Kaushal said, ``There is a state of normalcy'' in the region. He added, ``There is no escalation in violence, but some incidents are aimed to boost the sagging morale of Pakistan-sponsored militants. They are so demoralised and scared that they are desperate to do anything to make their presence felt.''

General Kaushal denied the Hurriyat allegation that the army had an ``indirect hand'' in the recent killing of some Jamaat-e-Islami activists in Anantnag, saying, ``The Hurriyat has a one-point programme: to blamethe security forces for every killing. They miss no opportunity to defame the security forces.''

he added, ``A gun culture has developed in Kashmir and killings are the result of personal enmity, and settling political scores. It is a law and order problem and needs more policing. The army has no role in it,'' he said.

General Kaushal said the army did not support the killing of innocent people in the Valley. ``It is against our conscience and discipline to kill innocents. If the army is allowed to kill innocents, it will be impossible to control and enforce discipline in the armed forces,'' the General said.

On Congress leader Mehbooba Mufti's statement that there had been a spurt in political killings and custodial deaths ever since the proactive or `hot pursuit' policy was introduced in the State, he said, ``Understanding militancy is not everybody's cup of tea. If we get sentimental about it, we can never analyse the situation correctly.''

He refuted claims that Taliban militants had infiltratedthe area, adding the Taliban would not venture into Kashmir. ``I have not seen or heard of any Taliban militant coming in. We should not be afraid of the Taliban. Taliban members will get killed if they venture into Kashmir. Kashmir is not Afghanistan, that they can come and score victories. Kashmir has a different culture, in which the Taliban cannot mix easily,'' he said.

The Kashmiris, for instance, will never accept their diktats, like, `No education or government service for women' and `men growing beards,' Gen Kaushal said.

``If the Taliban come here they will not be tolerated and will be stoned to death by Kashmiri girls -- the army will not have to waste ammunition,'' he said.