Indian-controlled Kashmir, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) - - A border guard of India's Border Security Force (BSF) was killed and another wounded Wednesday in an exchange of fire with Pakistani counterparts on the International Border in Kashmir, officials said.
The exchange of fire between two sides was reported from IB in Samba sector, about 53 km south of Jammu city, the winter capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir.
"Pakistan Rangers today resorted to unprovoked firing on our border outpost in Samba, which resulted in killing of a BSF man, besides wounding another," Rakesh Kumar, a senior BSF officer posted in Jammu told Xinhua over telephone. "The wounded BSF trooper has been hospitalized and his condition is stated to be stable."
The BSF men adequately retaliated to firing from Pakistan Rangers and the exchange lasted for quite some time, Kumar said. " We have retaliated to the firing from Pakistani side in equal measure," he noted.
The fresh exchange has come hours after an Indian military trooper was wounded in a similar exchange with Pakistani troops on Line of Control (LoC) in Pallanwala sector in frontier Akhnoor of Jammu district.
Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar Tuesday told media that Indian military must retaliate with "double the force" to cease-fire violations.
Wednesday's exchange rose the number of this year's cease-fire violations to 564.
Officials said 411 cease-fire violations were reported along IB and 153 violations along LoC.
During this year's deadly skirmishes between troops of the two countries posted on LoC and IB in Kashmir, 20 people including six Indian troopers were killed on this side and over 150 wounded, Indian officials said.
Pakistani side also suffered causalities in the stand-off, according to reports.
Cease-fire violations this year are the highest so far since 2003 agreement to observe cease-fire was reached between the two nuclear neighbors.
In 2013, the newspaper said 347 cease-fire violations - 199 along LoC and 148 along IB were recorded.
Both New Delhi and Islamabad accuse each other of resorting to unprovoked firings and violating cease-fire agreements. And both sides maintain their troops gave befitting reply to the other side.
The troops of India and Pakistan intermittently exchange fire on 720 km-long LoC and 198 km IB in Kashmir, despite an agreement in 2003 to observe cease-fire. Though some violations have been reported on both sides, the cease-fire remains in effect.
LoC is a de facto border that divides Kashmir into India and Pakistan controlled parts. The LoC on both sides is guarded by army, while IB is guarded by Border Security Force (BSF) on Indian side and Pakistan Rangers on the other side.
Kashmir, the Himalayan region divided between India and Pakistan is claimed by both in full. Since their independence from Britain, the two countries have fought three wars, two exclusively over Kashmir.
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