1st LD Writethru: Landmine explosion kills 3 civilians near Kashmir LoC

Three civilians were killed and another wounded on Saturday in a landmine blast close to the Line of Control (LoC) dividing Kashmir, officials said.

The blast took place in forward Changar area of Nowshera Sector in frontier Rajouri district about 220 km southwest of Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir.

"Today morning in Nowshera sector, three civilians were killed and another wounded when an unidentified vintage mine accidentally exploded," Indian military spokesman Lt. Col. Manish Mehta told Xinhua. "It is believed that the landmine might have got drifted in the farmland from a minefield nearby because of incessant rains during past several days."

The civilians, according to reports, were walking through the agricultural fields when the explosion took place.

However, Mehta said the blast occurred when laborers lifted an unexploded old vintage mine by mistake.

"Further details are being ascertained and the wounded civilian was immediately removed to nearest hospital, where he is being administered medical aid," he said.

Reports said the victims were migrant laborers hired by a villager for agricultural work on his field.

The LoC is de facto border that divides Kashmir into Indian and Pakistani-controlled parts. Both sides of the cease-fire line is believed to be heavily mined.

Apart from civilians, many troopers were killed and wounded in past while stepping over landmines during patrolling in the frontier districts of restive Indian-controlled Kashmir.

International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), a Geneva-based network seeking a ban on landmines, has been urging both New Delhi and Islamabad to ban the use of landmines and launch comprehensive mine clearance programs.

India and Pakistan are yet to ban landmines and hence fall into the group of 36 countries in the world that are not signatories to the mine ban treaty.

Local newspaper Greater Kashmir, quoting region's home department, said Indian military has failed to complete the de- mining along the LoC areas which were mined in the wake of Kargil intrusion in 1999.

"In the civil military liaison conference held in Jammu in November 2013, the issue regarding de-mining of areas - which had been mined in the wake of Kargil intrusion in 1999 - and payment of compensation to the concerned land owners was discussed and subsequently decided that military will complete the de-mining in the plain areas, excluding those where mines are required for operational purpose," the report said.

In Poonch district alone, adjacent to Rajouri district, 550 people, including 100 children, have been maimed after they stepped over unmarked landmines in the areas along the LoC. the newspaper said.

According to ICBL officials landmines on LoC and IB were mostly laid during 1947, 1960s, 1970s and during 1999 Kargil War between India and Pakistan.

New Delhi and Islamabad in 2003 agreed to observe cease-fire along the 720-km-long LoC and 198-km-long International Border. Though some violations have been reported on both sides, the cease- fire however remains in effect.

A guerrilla war is going on between militants and Indian troops in Indian-controlled Kashmir since 1989. The gunfight between the two takes place intermittently.

Kashmir, the Himalayan region divided between India and Pakistan is claimed by both in full. Since their independence from Britain, the two countries have fought three wars, two exclusively over Kashmir. Endi