Pigeon With Ring Bearing Pakistani Number Found in J&K Border Village

A pigeon found in a border village in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district has triggered a security investigation after a ring on its leg was found to bear what appears to be a Pakistani mobile number.

The bird was spotted by residents of Chhan Khatriyan village in the Hiranagar sector on Tuesday evening and was subsequently handed over to local police. Upon examining the ring, authorities noted the number resembled a Pakistani mobile code and alerted intelligence agencies.

Police have stated they are verifying whether the bird was being used for cross-border messaging, a tactic that has been suspected in previous incidents. The recovery has raised concerns given the region's history, with the Hiranagar belt having been used as an infiltration route by terrorists in recent years.

The area's dense sarkanda grass, nullahs, and rivulets along the 50-km International Border stretch in Hiranagar and Samba provide cover for infiltrators. Security forces have foiled several infiltration attempts in the region, and past attacks in Kathua, Basantgarh, and Billawar have been linked to terrorists who entered via this route.

This is not the first such incident. In 2020, a pigeon with a ring bearing a Pakistani number was captured in Manyari village of Hiranagar. Similar recoveries were made in RS Pura and Akhnoor sectors in 2016 and 2018. In earlier cases, pigeons were found with Pakistani stamps, coded messages, and wire-like antennas.

Security agencies are now examining whether these birds are being used for espionage, narcotics smuggling, or to test the response mechanisms of border forces. A senior officer confirmed that the bird has been taken into custody and all agencies have been informed, with an investigation underway into all angles.