Overview

• Nearly half-a-dozen drones were detected around 9:15 pm Sunday over forward areas of the Mendhar sector in Poonch, officials said.
• The craft, reported to be flying at high altitude and suspected to be for surveillance, returned to the Pakistani side within about five minutes.
• Security forces cordoned the area overnight and started a large search at first light to check for any weapons or narcotics airdropped during the sortie.
• Authorities said this was the second such occurrence in three days, following a drone sighting by locals over Jammu’s Gajansoo that also went back across the border without dropping material.
• Officials note Pakistan’s increasing use of drones for arms and narcotics smuggling has complicated border security, and police last year announced a ₹3 lakh reward for information leading to recovery of drone-dropped items.