Third suspected Pakistani drone spotted in Punjab

Chandigarh, Oct 10 (IANS) Another suspected Pakistani drone was spotted flying in the Indian territory along the India-Pakistan border in Hussainiwala area in Punjab on Tuesday night, security officials said.

This is the third such spotting in Hussainiwala near Ferozepur over the past three days. Villagers captured pictures of the drone on their mobiles.

"A shining object was seen in the sky moving towards Ferozepur in the night," an eyewitness told a news channel.

Ferozepur Deputy Commissioner Chander Gaind said the BSF and the police have intensified patrolling in areas near the Indo-Pakistan border.

A police official said a search operation has been on in the fields and the banks of Satluj river along the border to recover the drone or any object dropped by it.

The Punjab Police are also investigating weapon droppings by two drones in the area from across the border.

Police teams are also on the job to ascertain the links of the terror groups involved in sending these drones from Pakistan, a police spokesperson had said on September 27, clarifying that so far only two such drones had been recovered -- one last month and the second in a burnt condition three days ago in Jhabal town in Tarn Taran district.

Investigations so far suggest that several Pakistan-based terrorist groups were engaged in smuggling weapons into India since August, post the abrogation of Article 370 in Kashmir.

Both the recovered drones were apparently sent by different terror groups, linked with the Pakistan ISI, and the State-sponsored Jihadi and pro-Khalistani terrorist outfits working under its command.