An Army Colonel was killed, and two other security personnel injured in an encounter near the Line of Control (LoC) in Kupwara district of Kashmir today, an official said.
The Commanding Officer of 41 Rashtriya Rifles, Santosh Mahadik, sustained serious injuries when a search party he was leading came under fire from militants in the dense forests of Haji Naka, an official said. Later, he succumbed to his injuries.
They said a police constable was also injured in the firing and both were evacuated to a hospital.
The party of army and police came under fire when it was conducting searches as part of an operation started on 13
November to flush out terrorists hiding in the forest area on the basis of a specific information.
An Army jawan was injured on the first day of the operation.
After the initial contact on 13 November, the militants fled deep into the forests and the security forces continued the chase them, leading to fresh contact today, an official said.