Punjab: BSF spots Pak drone near international border in Gurdaspur

Chandigarh, April 20: Border Security Force personnel intercepted a Pakistani drone near Bhariyal village of Punjab's Gurdaspur district, officials said on Thursday.

The drone spotted at the Bhariyal village post of the BSF, was observed flying inside Indian territory for five minutes before it was intercepted with illumination bombs.

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"The drone kept flying inside the Indian border for 5 minutes, during which 3 rounds of firing were done by BSF and an Ilu bomb was also fired, after which the drone flew back to Pakistan," BSF said.

In a similar incident, BSF personnel intercepted a Pakistani drone near the Dhanoe Kalan in the Amritsar district of the State and recovered packets of narcotics, an official statement said on April 16.

The incident took place on April 15 at around 8.22 pm when the BSF troops heard the buzzing sound of the suspected flying object (drone) entering from Pakistan into Indian territory.

Earlier on Thursday, Security forces tracked and shot down a drone after it crossed the Line of Control (LoC) in the Beri Pattan area in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri.

Five loaded AK magazines, some cash and a sealed packet were recovered from the drone, added the PRO.

BSF is mandated to guard the 3,323 km India-Pakistan International Border.

On March 28, BSF shot down a Pakistani drone in Amritsar soon after it entered Indian territory carrying a consignment of contraband items, the paramilitary force said.

The drone was shot down in the Amritsar when the BSF troops heard the buzzing sound of the flying object. It was recovered the next day morning during a search operation conducted by the border guarding force. The drone entered Indian territory from Pakistan and it was detected in the area of Border Outpost Rajatal in the Amritsar Sector, said the BSF.

Earlier in February, the BSF troops also recovered six big packets of heroin weighing 6.275 kg, contained inside a bag in a wheat field of Toor village in the Amritsar district.