High alert in J&K after multiple Pak drone sightings near IB and LoC in Samba, Rajouri, Poonch

Security forces across Jammu and Kashmir heightened vigilance on Sunday evening following the detection of several unidentified drones near the border with Pakistan. The sightings, reported from Samba, Rajouri and Poonch districts, triggered an immediate security response along both the International Border and the Line of Control.

Officials said multiple drone movements, estimated at five, were picked up in forward areas, prompting precautionary ground searches to ensure no weapons or contraband had been dropped on Indian territory. Authorities believe the objects briefly crossed into Indian airspace before withdrawing across the border.

Following the alerts, security forces implemented standard response protocols, placing nearby posts on standby and launching coordinated search operations in potential drop locations.

In Rajouri district, troops stationed in the Nowshera sector fired light and medium machine guns after a drone was spotted over the Gania-Kalsian area at around 6.35 pm. Around the same time, another aerial object displaying a blinking light was observed near Khabbar village in the Teryath area. Officials said it appeared to travel from Dharmsal in Kalakote towards Bharakh before vanishing from view.

In Samba district, a similar object was seen hovering briefly over Chak Babral village in the Ramgarh sector at approximately 7.15 pm. Another suspected drone was detected in Poonch district, where security personnel observed movement from Tain towards Topa in the Mankote sector along the LoC at around 6.25 pm.

Joint teams comprising the Army, police and other security agencies were deployed across all affected zones to search for any suspicious material. Officials said the operations continued late into the night as a precautionary step.

The heightened alert follows a recent arms recovery in Paloora village of Samba district near the IB. Security forces had earlier seized a weapons cache allegedly dropped by a Pakistani drone, including pistols, magazines, ammunition and a grenade, reinforcing concerns about the increasing use of drones for cross-border smuggling and infiltration attempts.