Srinagar: Drones have emerged as the new “Over Ground Workers” (OGWs) for terror groups in Jammu and Kashmir, causing concern among security agencies as this shift from human networks to unmanned aerial vehicles for surveillance and logistics marks a new frontier in the region’s security landscape, officials said here on Wednesday.
The reliance on the human network of OGWs has drastically been cut down as many of them have been arrested or have gone into hiding due to increasing pressure from the security forces, they said.
The shift from human networks to drone technology is a new frontier in asymmetric warfare, with Pakistan’s ISI also intensifying its efforts to push terrorists across the Line of Control (LoC) with the help of drones, the officials said.
Some of the terrorists holed up in heights in the Kashmir region, as well as in Kishtwar and Rajouri, have been using these drones for maintaining surveillance over the approaching troops, they said while citing it as a reason for the little success in past counter-terror operations.
The drones, in some instances, are believed to be carrying dry ration for the holed-up terrorists in the higher reaches of the Jammu region, the officials said.
The use of drones by terrorist groups to target vital installations in Jammu and Kashmir began on June 27, 2021, when two unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) struck buildings at the Jammu airport, marking a significant escalation in the conflict.
Post 2017, the use of drones initially for drug smuggling and later for arms dropping along the International Border in Punjab was viewed by the officials as the first step before shifting their use for direct attacks in Jammu and Kashmir.
The officials said the ISI is leveraging drone technology for precise real-time situational assessments ahead of infiltration attempts.
The officials also said that under the new strategy, the ISI has been using drones for monitoring the presence of the army along the Line of Control or the International Border, identifying vulnerabilities and analysing terrain to assist terrorists in crossing the LoC while minimising the risk of detection.
There were credible inputs that in third week of May this year, ISI officials and top terrorists of the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed outfits in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) had a meeting during which focus was laid on increasing recruitment and the “importance of drone surveillance along the LoC to monitor conditions prior to infiltration attempts, the officials said.
They said there were plans to replace active guides with local residents from PoK or Pakistan to manage infiltration routes more effectively.
The officials said that ISI was working on a detailed plan for the terror outfits that included relocating terror training camps and launching pads within PoK and constructing underground bunkers in preparation for potential armed conflict with India.
This move from ISI is believed to be a response to “Operation Sindoor,” in which the Indian Air Force targeted and destroyed nine terror facilities in PoK and Pakistan which included the headquarters of the banned Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba terror groups.
The rise of drone technology has opened a new and dangerous chapter in global terrorism, with UAVs now being used by terror groups for a variety of nefarious operations, including intelligence collection and the delivery of explosives.
A report from the Association of the United States Army (AUSA), a nonprofit professional association dedicated to serving America’s Army, said, “Once Pandora’s box was open, bad actors adapted quickly and began using drones to plan and conduct attacks.”
The report had said that terrorist organisations are learning lessons from previous conflicts and are continuously adapting their methods. The first use of drones by terrorists was by the Islamic State during military operations in Iraq’s Mosul, where they deployed UAVs for both reconnaissance and bomb dropping.
As seen in past conflicts, these groups are learning and evolving their tactics. The rapid advancements in drone technology and its increasing accessibility provide new avenues for terror outfits to sow fear and execute attacks, complicating counter-terrorism efforts, the officials said.
