New Delhi: It was 8 am. Surjan Singh was lying in bed when the house shook. The next thing he knew, the ceiling of his home in Jammu’s Poonch district had collapsed and he, along with his son, were trapped under the debris. Meanwhile, splinters from the shell had hit his nephew, Amarjeet Singh, as he was running down the stairs. Amarjeet was rushed to the district hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries.
Pakistan launched intense shelling early Wednesday morning in Poonch following India’s Operation Sindoor. According to a statement issued by Press Information Bureau (PIB) at 1.44 am, Op Sindoor consisted of precision strikes against nine terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) between 1.05 am and 1.30 am (IST) Wednesday, according to PIB.
“Three splinters hit him. Two were removed, but one was lodged in his lung. That’s what caused the most damage,” said Surjan Singh to ThePrint over the phone.
“The doctors couldn’t save him,” he added, weeping.
Amarjeet, a 52-year-old retired Army official, is survived by his wife and two children, aged 13 and 8. He lived in Poonch town, just metres away from the district hospital.
A few kilometres away, a local shopkeeper, Amreek Singh, was killed when a shell exploded near his shop at Syndicate Chowk. According to police officials, a gurdwara and a mosque were also damaged in the shelling. Surjan terms the attack as being the “worst” he has seen.
“Even during the Kargil war, we had witnessed shelling, but that didn’t last long. This time civilian areas were attacked and the shelling continued throughout the night,” he said.
At least 15 civilians, including a woman and three children, were killed, while more than 45 others have been injured, according to official sources in the Indian Army. All the victims have been identified as residents of Poonch district in Jammu. Police report that all victims were hit by direct shelling from the Pakistan army.
“The children killed were teenagers between 11 and 13 years old. We at the District Hospital in Poonch are doing our best to save lives,” said Dr Pravez Ahmed Khan, Chief Medical Officer, Poonch, to ThePrint.
The district administration and police are relocating residents to safer areas identified in the Surankote and Mandi blocks. Some families are also moving to Rajouri and Jammu districts to take shelter with relatives. Meanwhile, police are patrolling in bulletproof vehicles and helping transport the injured to hospitals.
“We have no option but to evacuate the injured from areas within the firing range and move them to safer locations. These sites have been identified, and both police and army personnel are on the ground conducting rescue operations,” said Mohammad Rashid, Station House Officer, Poonch City.
Oppn unity in face of attack
Shobit Kumar Tandon, 28, was on the second floor of his house in Ward Number 2 of Poonch city when he heard the sound of the shelling. He immediately told his family to move to the lower floors of the house. But before they could all make it, a shell tore through the ceiling and landed in the kitchen, where his mother was cooking. She tried to run but was hit in the thigh.
Shobit, who had managed to reach the first floor, was struck by splinters from the shell that hit his house. He sustained injuries to his thighs, back, and hand. He and his mother were rushed to the district hospital by family members. Due to the severity of his injuries, Tandon was later referred to Jammu for further treatment.
“It was 7 in the morning. The shelling was intense, so I asked everyone to run to the ground floor. But the gola fell in the kitchen where my mother was cooking. Thank God we’re alive,” said Tandon, speaking to ThePrint from the district hospital in Poonch.
Tandon, who works in the revenue department of Poonch district, is being shifted to Jammu for further medical care.
BJP MLC Pradeep Kumar, who has been involved in rescue efforts said that since the intense shelling began around 2 am, he has been helping transport the injured to the district hospital.
“It started with two Forest Department officials who were injured. I rescued them and took them to the hospital. The Pakistanis spared nothing—they’ve targeted mosques, gurdwaras, and civilian homes. This is massive,” said Kumar.
The incident has brought together members of opposition parties, who are now collectively planning ways to offer assistance to the affected residents. National Conference leader and Poonch MLA Ajaz Ahmed Jan has called for calm and unity in the face of the crisis.
“I am on the ground, along with the police department, to ensure everything remains peaceful. We need to stay united in this situation,” Jan said to ThePrint.
Meanwhile, Surjan Singh, who also has relatives scattered in different districts of Jammu, says that he will not leave his house and relocate, even if it’s temporary.
“My nephew Amarjeet was an army officer. When he joined the forces, he knew he would have to give his life. Unfortunately, he gave his life after retirement but he did it for the nation,” said 61-year-old Surjan.
(Edited by Zinnia Ray Chaudhuri)
Also read: ‘Some screamed with every thud, others prayed’—J&K residents recall night of Operation Sindoor