Guns not to boom on LoC

New Delhi: India and Pakistan have agreed to put an end to all ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC) and address each other's core issues as well as concerns, according to a joint military statement on Thursday.

"In the interest of achieving mutually beneficial and sustainable peace along the borders, the two DGMOs agreed to address each other's core issues and concerns which have propensity to disturb peace and lead to violence," the statement said.

India and Pakistan's militaries stopped firing along the LoC in Jammu & Kashmir and other areas with effect from the midnight of February 24-25. "The Director Generals of Military Operations of India and Pakistan held discussions over the established mechanism of hotline contact.

The two sides reviewed the situation along the Line of Control and all other sectors in a free, frank and cordial atmosphere," the statement added. India and Pakistan signed a ceasefire agreement in 2003, but it has hardly been followed in letter and spirit over the past several years with more violations than observance of the pact.

The DGMOs also reiterated that existing mechanisms of hotline contact and border flag meetings will be utilised to resolve any unforeseen situation or misunderstanding, it further stated.

In written response to a question in Lok Sabha earlier this month, Union Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy said a total of 10,752 cases of ceasefire violations have taken place along India's border with Pakistan in the last three years, in which 72 security personnel and 70 civilians were killed.

He said 364 security personnel and 341 civilians were injured in cross-border firings along the International Border and the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir in 2018, 2019 and 2020.

Last week, the armies of India and China which have been engaged in a border standoff in eastern Ladakh concluded withdrawal of troops and weapons from north and south banks of Pangong Lake in the high-altitude region.