A local stands on the debris of a damaged structure after heavy firing and shelling from Pakistan, at Bantalab on the outskirts of Jammu, on May 10, 2025.
| Photo Credit: PTI
Hours ahead of the ceasefire agreement between India and Pakistan, Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday (May 10, 2025) morning was gripped in a war-like situation as five civilians, including a senior officer, were killed in cross-border shelling of the Pakistani troops.
In first such instances, loud bangs were reported by locals as unidentifiable projectiles hit scores of houses in many urban centres, including twin capitals of Srinagar and Jammu.
Officials said Pakistan intensified shelling in districts close to the Line of Control (LoC) early in the morning. Among many structures, the house of Raj Kumar Thapa, additional development commissioner, was hit by a long-range artillery shell. Thapa was killed and two of his staff members were injured, officials said. J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah met the victim’s family. “Just yesterday, he was accompanying the Deputy CM (Chief Minister) around the district and attended the online meeting I chaired. We have lost a dedicated officer,” Mr. Abdullah said.
Locals said Rajouri town witnessed shelling by Pakistan for the first time since the 1999 Kargil war. Two non-locals, Aisha Noor, 2, and Mohammad Shohib, 35, also suffered splinter injuries and died after a shell exploded near an industrial area in Rajouri town.
In Rajouri’s adjacent district of Poonch, Rashida Bi, 55, died after a shell exploded near her house at Kanghra-Galhutta village in Poonch’s Mendhar. The fifth civilian victim, Ashok Kumar, from R.S. Pora’s Bidipur Jatta village, was killed as the Pakistan Army opened both heavy and small arms fire on the International Border.
“Security forces recovered a Turkish kamikaze drone in a village in Nowshera along the LoC in Rajouri district,” a government spokesman said.
Panic swept J&K’s winter capital Jammu too after middle and upper-middle class colonies of Rehari, Janipur and Roop Nagar saw several structures damaged by projectiles. “Jammu city has never seen such scenes ever. Even when the Kargil war took place, Jammu city had a normal life. It’s the first time in my living memory I saw houses and religious places getting damaged by air-borne projectiles,” Tarun Kumar, 41, a resident of Jammu, said.
Mr. Abdullah visited several localities of Jammu to have a first-hand assessment of damages. “I visited Rehari and Roopnagar areas to assess damage caused by the recent shelling. The pain and disruption faced by residents is deeply concerning,” he said. Several vehicles were also damaged due to these projectiles.
In Srinagar, fear gripped the city after more than four earth-shaking loud bangs were reported by locals emanating from the skies. Unidentifiable projectiles were recovered from the Dal lake and Lasjan areas, officials said.
Published – May 10, 2025 11:05 pm IST
