More than 1,500 Army soldiers are now involved in one of the largest counter-terror operations in the state in recent times, perhaps next only to the month-long Operation Sarp Vinash in 2003 in which 62 insurgents were killed after the Army raided a major militant logistics base in the Hill Kaka region.

However, the Army is finding it extremely difficult to close in on the militants, who are hiding in a cave on the upper reaches of a mountain slope in the Bains forest, due to a thick fog cover that has reduced visibility to as little as 2 metres. The operation is being carried out at altitudes of over 5,000 feet.

With the militants holding an advantageous position on the slope, soldiers are also finding it difficult to move during daylight and the critical lack of night-vision devices has once again come back to haunt the Army.

While night-vision surveillance devices have been moved in and the Para Commandos are carrying their own special equipment, the lack of night-vision rifle sights and other advanced devices has slowed down operations to a frustrating pace.

As reported by this newspaper, the Army is crippled by a case of night blindness due to a wrangle with defence PSU Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL). While the Army requires new ‘third generation’ night vision devices and night sights for rifles, it is stuck with older devices that are more of a hindrance than an asset.

Intelligence inputs suggest that only 10 militants may be holed up in the forest but the Army has been able to gun down only four of them after seven days of operations. They are yet to retrieve any bodies from the forest. Two Army soldiers were killed in the initial stages of the encounter after they came under fire from a ‘lookout’ detachment of the militants.

With daytime operations slowed down due to the fog and night operations limited due to the lack of enhanced vision devices, the Army has decided to adopt a cautious ‘no casualty’ approach to flush out the ultras.

Also hampering operations is the difficult terrain of the region. The jungle has a dense undergrowth and a thick pine tree cover that reduces visibility even when the sun is up. The presence of caves and undulating terrain, officers say, provides natural fortifications for the militants.

The operation being carried out by the Army stretches along an area of 2.5 sq km and several layers of cordons have been placed around the suspected militant base. The Army has also deployed helicopters in the region to drop in supplies and carry out surveillance missions.

So far, the Army has recovered a large amount of administrative stores, including food supplies, one rifle, two pistols, 10 hand grenades and several IEDs from the encounter site.

The terrorists are using cell phones and radios to communicate and intercepts indicate that four of them may have been killed by the Army.

Army offices say that the militants had a base in the forest to survive the winters before coming down into the hinterland when the weather gets warmer. “This is a normal pattern for militants in the winters. They stay in the higher reaches during winters to stay away from security forces. Our operational counter-insurgency grid also shifts to cater to this tactics of terrorists. We look for such safe havens,” a senior Army officer said.

The operation, which began on New Year’s eve, took off after security forces received inputs from radio intercepts that a group of Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Toiba militants were taking shelter in the upper reaches of the Mendhar region.

After getting intelligence inputs from locals who had provided the militants shelter and food, the Army laid down a cordon around the location to flush out the men.

Interestingly, while the Bain forest does not adjoin the Line of Control, a series of unprecedented ceasefire violations - around 20 — took place in Mendhar sector last year. The area is known to be an infiltration belt and in the past year, the entire sector has reported cross LoC firings and attempted infiltration. There have also been militant activities like killings, grenade throwing or attacks on Army convoys.