A militant ambush on an area-domination patrol of security forces killed a CRPF inspector in Jammu’s Udhampur district in yet another setback for law enforcement agencies.

Udhampur police in a post said there was an exchange of fire between militants and a joint party of police and CRPF at Chill in Dudu of Udhampur district in which the officer received gunshot wounds and later succumbed to his injuries. The police said the joint party was on an area-domination patrol.

The slain officer has been identified as inspector Kuldeep Singh from the 187 Battalion. Sources said militants had laid an ambush as forces were undertaking the patrol in a dense forests. The forces retaliated to the fire and the exchange continued for some time.

Reinforcements have been rushed to the area to hunt down the militants but they are believed to have melted in the thick greens. Dudu is part of Basantgarh, where attacks have been carried out previously. It is connected with the adjoining districts of Kathua and Doda where thick forest cover gives militants an advantage to shuttle from one place to another and keep the security forces guessing.

This is the second CRPF casualty in a spate of militancy-related incidents in the Jammu region comprising 10 districts since the June 9 swearing-in of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. A CRPF constable died in a gunfight with militants on June 11 in Kathua district. The 10 other security force casualties in Jammu during this period were from the army.