Key
developments since May 2001: In December 2001, India began laying
antipersonnel and antivehicle mines along its 1,800-mile border with Pakistan.
This is apparently one of the largest mine-laying operations anywhere in the
world in years. There have been numerous reports of civilian casualties,
raising concerns about the effectiveness of the measures taken to protect
civilians, as required by CCW Amended Protocol II. There is also concern about
possible Indian use of non-detectable mines. There were at least 332 new mine
casualties reported in 2001, and another 180 mine casualties reported between 1
January and 17 June 2002. India’s Ambassador Rakesh Sood chaired the key
Main Committee One during the Second CCW Review Conference and is now chair of
the Group of Governmental Experts to consider the issues of explosives remnants
of war and antivehicle mines.
MINE BAN POLICY
India has not acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty. No
significant change has occurred in the Indian government position on landmines.
In October 2001, Ambassador Rakesh Sood stated to the UN General Assembly,
“India believes that a phased approach for a non-discriminatory, universal
and global ban on anti-personnel mines, that addresses the legitimate defence
requirement of States will help ameliorate the critical humanitarian crises that
have resulted from irresponsible transfer and indiscriminate use of landmines.
The process of complete elimination of APLs will be facilitated by addressing
the legitimate defence role of anti-personnel landmines for operational
requirements under the defence doctrines of the countries concerned, through the
availability of appropriate militarily effective, non-lethal, and cost effective
alternative
technologies.”[1]
India abstained from voting on the November 2001 UN General Assembly
Resolution calling for universalization of the Mine Ban Treaty, as it has done
for the previous four years. India did not attend as an observer the Third
Meeting of States Parties in Nicaragua in September 2001, nor did it participate
in any of the Mine Ban Treaty intersessional Standing Committee meetings in 2001
and 2002.
India is party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) and ratified
Amended Protocol II on 2 September 1999. It participated in the Annual
Conference of States Parties to Amended Protocol II in Geneva on 10 December
2001, and submitted its annual report required by Article 13 of Amended Protocol
II. Previous editions of Landmine Monitor reported that India had exercised its
right to defer compliance with certain technical requirements of Amended
Protocol II. India apparently did not, and is fully bound by Amended Protocol
II.
India was very actively involved in the Second CCW Review Conference, held in
Geneva from 11-21 December 2001, with Ambassador Rakesh Sood chairing Main
Committee One. The Conference’s main accomplishment was to agree to
expand the scope of the CCW to include non-international armed conflicts, and
India served as the Friend of the Chair on this issue. Ambassador Sood is now
serving as chair of the Group of Governmental Experts established at the Review
Conference to consider the issues of explosives remnants of war and mines other
than antipersonnel mines.
At the Second Review Conference, India emphasized the need to focus on
Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs): “This Conference cannot stand by and
ignore the devastation caused by IEDs. My delegation urges that exploration of
this matter be initiated at this Review Conference, so that we could take
concrete action at the earliest. This conference would then have responded to a
humanitarian problem that knows no boundaries and threatens to cause greater
devastation than some of the issues that we are attempting to
tackle.”[2]
During the reporting period, as a public education and awareness campaign,
the Indian Campaign to Ban Landmines (IIPDEP) organized three national
conferences and four regional seminars and photo exhibitions in various parts of
India including Jammu & Kashmir, North East India, and
Rajasthan.[3] The delegates who
attended the seminars are arranging public education and awareness programs and
advocacy programs in their respective cities or villages in their local
languages. IIPDEP received financial support for the series of conferences and
seminars from Canada and other public donations.
USE
Recent Use
In December 2001, India
began deploying antipersonnel and antivehicle mines on its border with Pakistan.
This is apparently one of the largest mine-laying operations anywhere in the
world in years. Following the attack on the Indian Parliament on 13 December
2001, India amassed troops along its border with Pakistan and commenced mining
of the 1,800-mile-long border, at times creating minefields three miles
wide.[4] Since December 2001,
there has been a steady exodus from the border villages due to the presence of
newly laid mines and fear of attack from across the
border.[5]
Details of overall numbers of mines laid, locations of mines laid, or total
amount of mined land, are not
available.[6] Media accounts
and other sources provide a partial picture. A report from early July 2002,
noting that limited mine clearance was commencing, indicates that the Indian
Army mined 173,000 acres of land along the line of control in
Kashmir.[7] In late January
2002, the deputy commissioner of the Ferozepore district of Punjab stated that
27,127 hectares (271.3 square kilometers), including 350 villages, along the
210-kilometer long international border in the district had been acquired by the
Indian Army to lay mines or construct
fortifications.[8] In many
instances, the mines have been laid in cultivated farmlands. Also in January
2002, Army officers in Indian-administered Kashmir reported planting 700-900
antipersonnel mines near the Indian frontiers with Pakistan in the Jammu
region.[9] In another media
report, the local army commander, Colonel Shirish Kulkarni said that a two or
three acre plot was likely to contain 50 or 60
mines.[10] He also said that
once the mines are placed, clearing one field alone could easily take 20 days.
In April 2002, the Indian army evacuated some Rajasthani villagers living near
densely mined areas near the Pakistan border as rising summer temperatures set
off a series of
explosions.[11]
According to media reports, “Indian troops have completed two phases of
laying the mines and in the third and final phase, they would lay mines to
protect strategic targets near the
frontier.”[12] The final
phase had not commenced as of July 2002.
In March 2002, the Ministry of Defence reported that seven civilians had been
killed and 23 injured in mine blasts in the newly mined areas in previous three
months.[13] There have been
many media reports of civilian casualties that have occurred in areas mined
since December 2001. In Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, in December 2001, one person was
injured and twenty sheep died when the sheep entered a
minefield.[14] In
Bikaner, Rajasthan, a cyclist trying to cross into a fenced minefield was killed
on New Year’s Day. A week earlier, a child was injured in the same
area.[15] In Amritsar, Punjab,
a villager was taking a shortcut to reach his field, when he stepped on a mine;
he survived, but required an amputation.[16] Also in Amritsar, on 18 January
2002, two farmers were injured in separate mine incidents near the villages of
Mullakot and Khemkaran.[17] A
deputy commissioner in the Amritsar District has reportedly distributed
compensation checks from the Indian Red Cross Society to six recent mine
victims.[18] Seven mine
casualties have been reported in the Ferozepore district of
Punjab.[19] Also in January
2002, a woman and her son were killed near the village of Najjwak in the
Ankhnoor sector in Kashmir as they took a short cut across a field that had been
recently mined.[20]
Incidents were still occurring in June 2002. In Ganganagar, Rajasthan, a
ten-year-old girl was killed and three other children injured by an
antipersonnel mine when they were bathing in the village canal. The mine was
carried into that part of the canal from
elsewhere.[21] In other
incidents in June, a boy was killed and three others injured when they triggered
a landmine in a wheat field near the border with
Pakistan,[22] and one person was
killed and another injured in a landmine blast that occurred when the man was
tilling his field.[23]
As a State Party to Amended Protocol II, India must provide effective
exclusion of civilians from areas containing non-remotely-delivered
antipersonnel mines. Reports of civilian casualties in India following the
recent mine laying call into question the effectiveness of the measures taken to
protect Indian civilians from the effects of mines.
It appears that, admittedly based on a small number of media accounts, India
is at least taking some steps to fulfill its obligation. For example, a report
in the 31 January 2002, Tribune notes that in the Ferozepore district in
Punjab, the civilian administration and Indian Army are conducting mine risk
education for the civilian population and fencing and warning signs in the Hindi
and Gurmukhi languages are
present.[24]
However, other reports present a different picture on the steps taken to
ensure the effective exclusion of civilians from areas mined by the Indian Army.
One media report noted, “Thousands of acres along the Indo-Pak border have
been mined by the Army, with no markers to give warning. In some places, a
narrow ribbon with a faintly written ‘Danger’ sign in Punjabi is the
only indicator for the largely illiterate village population not to stray into
these heavily mined fields.” The report also noted, “Army officials
in Delhi counter these fears by insisting that all minefields are laid according
to a plan and that records of the mine-laying are diligently maintained. Army
spokesman Colonel Shruti Kant says, ‘Each mine is accounted for and taken
out by the same set of troops after assigned task is
over.’”[25]
Amended Protocol II also prohibits the use of low-metal-content
(non-detectable) antipersonnel mines. While it is not known what types of mines
India has been laying, most of India’s mines are believed to be
low-metal-content M14 mines. In December 2001, prior to the start of its
massive mine-laying operation, India reported that “a programme has been
evolved” to modify the mines to make them
detectable,[26] but seemed to
indicate that actual modification had not yet begun. (See section below on
stockpiling).
Mines have also killed and injured a large number of Indian Army and border
security troops while they were deploying the mines. According to a 7 March
2002 Ministry of Defence press release, a total of 50 soldiers had died and
another 95 were injured in mine blasts in the previous three
months.[27] In late December
2001, there were reports of three Army personnel killed in Batala when a
landmine they were laying near the border went off
accidentally.[28] A few days
later, fourteen soldiers were killed and four injured in a mine-laying accident
near Lambawal village close to Jaisalmer in
Rajasthan.[29] In yet another
December incident, a soldier was killed and five others were injured in two
landmine blasts near the Line of Control in Jammu. A jawan (soldier) was blown
up when he stepped on a landmine during an
exercise.[30] On 5 January, at
least 18 persons, including 15 soldiers, were killed while transporting
landmines in Amritsar. Reports indicate that the mishap took place due to
improper handling of mines while they were being
unloaded.[31] Also in January,
in the village of Mahawa in Amritsar, at least three soldiers were reported
killed and another seven injured when one of their trucks carrying mines in
crates mistakenly backed over one of the antivehicle mines they were
assembling.[32] Indian military
officials are reported to be investigating the causes of these incidents.
Indian military sources cite equipment failure as the cause for the large number
of mine casualties.[33]
Past Use
India used mines in its three wars with Pakistan
in 1947-48, 1965 and 1971. It also used mines in its war with China in
1962.[34] India asserts that it
has not used mines in counter-insurgency operations in the northern and
northeastern states.[35]
According to Pakistan’s Joint Staff Headquarters, “There are no
permanently laid landmines (antitank or antipersonnel) along the international
border between India and Pakistan. However, the situation is somewhat different
along the Line of Control (LOC) in Kashmir, where for regular deployment of
troops both India and Pakistan maintain permanently laid minefields along
certain portions of the
LOC.”[36]
Non-State Actor Use
Non-state actors continue to use landmines and
IEDs. In 2001, 264 antivehicle and antipersonnel landmines were recovered from
militants in Kashmir. Between January and March 2002, forty-nine mines were
seized. In 2001, 3,453 kilograms of explosives were
recovered[37] and, another 586
kilograms were recovered 1 January-31 March
2002.[38] In Jammu and Kashmir
five militant groups, including Hizbul Mujahideen, Harkat-ul-Ansar,
Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, and Hakat-ul-Jihadi Islami, have been using
landmines.[39]
In Indian states other than Jammu and Kashmir, at least six other armed
non-state groups have used mines and/or IEDs during the reporting period (since
May 2001). In the three states of Bihar, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh, three
militants groups, CPI (ML) - Party Unity, People’s War Group (PWG), and
the Maoist Communist Center (MCC) were considered responsible for landmine
attacks.[40] In addition, there
are reports of use of mines and IEDs use in Assam by the United Liberation Front
of Assam (ULFA);[41] in northern
Bengal by the Kamatapur Liberation Organization
(KLO);[42] and in Manipur by
Kanglei Yawol Kunna Lup
(KYKL).[43]
PRODUCTION
India had in the past produced two types of
antipersonnel mines: M16A1 bounding mines and low-metal-content M14 blast mines.
Pursuant to its obligations under Amended Protocol II, India declared that no
low-metal-content mines have been produced since 1 January
1997.[44]
In October 2000, India reported that it intends to produce new mines that
meet Amended Protocol II technical requirements. It said that a new remotely
delivered mine with self-destruct/self-deactivation mechanisms “has been
designed. Prototype production and trial evaluation will
follow.”[45] India has
not previously produced remotely delivered mines of any type. In addition, in
December 2001, India indicated that a detectable version of the hand-emplaced
M14 mine “has been designed and approved for
production.”[46]
Non-state actors in India produce IEDs that function as antipersonnel
landmines.[47]
TRANSFER
India has declared that it has never exported or
imported antipersonnel mines and has had a comprehensive export moratorium in
place since 3 May 1996.[48]
A mine found in significant quantities in Myanmar, and still used by Myanmar
government forces, is the LTM-76 antipersonnel mine. Experts have told Landmine
Monitor that these are likely to be decades-old mines of
Indian-manufacture.[49] The
Indian Ministry of External Affairs denies any transfer of such mines in the
past, and states that there are no such mines in the current inventory of the
Indian Army.[50]
The Indian government and various media sources have accused Pakistan of
supplying explosives, detonators and fuses used in making IEDs to various armed
opposition groups in India.[51]
Pakistan denies such allegations.
STOCKPILING
India has a stockpile of four to five million
antipersonnel mines, with the great majority believed to be M14
mines.[52] With regard to its
M14s, India stated in December 2001, “The design, development and trials
of anti-personnel mines, affixed with 8 grams of iron, which make them
detectable, have since been completed. All necessary technical and procedural
issues have been resolved and requisite financial support has also been obtained
to effect the said modifications. In addition, the methodology of incorporation
of the modifications to the existing stocks of anti-personnel mines have been
issued to the entire field forces and bulk stocking agencies. A programme has
been evolved and disseminated to ensure that implementation is completed well
before the stipulated period, as per provisions laid down in the Amended
Protocol II.”[53]
At the Second CCW Review Conference in December 2001, India opposed the
proposal that among other things would apply the same detectability requirement
for antipersonnel mines to antivehicle mines.
India attended the regional seminar on stockpile destruction that was held in
Malaysia in August 2001.
LANDMINE PROBLEM
Prior to the current mine-laying operation, the
most severe humanitarian problem was to be found in conflict areas where there
has been extensive use of improvised explosive devices by non-state actors.
Indeed, in early December 2001, just prior to the current operation, India
claimed, as it has in the past, “India is not a mine afflicted
country.”[54]
Agricultural lands and other useful areas were immediately demined on cessation
of previous hostilities.[55]
However, some mined areas still exist. These are generally in border areas with
scant population, though mine incidents are still reported each year. There is
a report that in Changia, a small village in Ranbir Singh Pura sector of Jammu,
23 residents were maimed by landmines deployed during the 1971 conflict; most of
the incidents occurred in fields allegedly cleared of
landmines.[56] Minefields are
generally mapped and marked in local languages. No surveys or assessments have
been carried out by any agency, as until now, the situation did not seem to
merit such exhaustive examination.
As noted above, following the fresh laying of mines by Indian troops, there
have been a string of incidents that have resulted in civilian and army
casualties. Antipersonnel mines were laid in crop fields and pastoral land
preventing villagers from tending their crops and their livestock. Border
residents have been forced to flee. In a media report, a spokesman for the
Indian military in Jammu referred to the number of refugees being more than
40,000 from only one
district.[57] Another article
reported that in Ferozepore hundreds of thousands have migrated following the
mining and fortification
operations.[58]
MINE CLEARANCE
With respect to the current mine operation, an
Indian official has reportedly said, “The Indian army...will clear the
area of all the mines if and when a military de-escalation takes
place.”[59] This process
has apparently begun, at least partially, in early July 2002. A media report,
quoting unnamed Indian officials, noted that, “the army began removing
mines this week from the Ranbir Singh Pura and Hiranagar
sectors.”[60] The same
report cites a statement issued by the Indian Defence Ministry that the Indian
Army was only removing mines selectively in some low-lying areas along rivers
prone to flooding. Quoting the Defence Ministry release, “This is being
done to obviate mines drifting due to flood water, posing a serious hazard to
our civilians residing in the adjoining areas...It is being ensured that such
de-mining does not, in any way, compromise on the overall defence
preparedness.”[61]
The Corps of Engineers is the central agency tasked with mine clearance, and
in previous years aided civil authorities in defusing and clearing improvised
explosive devices used by militant groups in parts of the
country.[62] In the past the
Indian Army has been involved in UN-sponsored mine clearance programs in various
parts of the globe, including Congo, Angola, Cambodia, Somalia, Mozambique,
Bosnia, Rwanda, and Sierra
Leone.[63]
In its October 2000 Amended Protocol II report, India proposed to establish a
“Mine Information Center” at the College of Military Engineering in
Pune, but no further action has been
reported.[64]
MINE ACTION FUNDING
India has neither contributed nor received any
mine action funding. However, it has offered significant assistance
internationally in the form of in-kind services in mine clearance in
UN-sponsored programs, as well as victim assistance. In December 2001, it sent
a team of doctors and technicians to Kabul to set up a camp to repair artificial
limbs (Jaipur Foot) for Afghan
amputees.[65] The team is to
repair or fit about 1,000 artificial limbs during their stay.
MINE RISK EDUCATION
There are no formal mine awareness programs in
India. However, the increased use of explosive devices by non-state actors has
raised the need for awareness efforts. Police and Army operating in conflict
zones have been sensitizing the local population to the dangers of unidentified
objects that could camouflage explosive devices. Electronic and print media
have contributed to public awareness of explosive devices through wide coverage
of the subject.
The fresh laying of mines in the border areas calls for a comprehensive mine
risk education program. There are reports indicating that the Army has advised
villagers to be careful and stay away from the mine infested
fields.[66] In the Ferozepore
district in Punjab, the civilian administration and Indian Army are conducting
mine awareness education for the civilian population and have fenced and
displayed warning signs in Hindi and
Gurmukhi.[67] However, it has
not prevented the increased number of incidents involving both civilians and
military personnel in the mined areas.
LANDMINE CASUALTIES
In 2001, casualties occurred due to landmine use
by both the Indian Armed Forces and militants. The exact number of casualties is
not known, as there is no comprehensive data collection mechanism on landmine
incidents in India. However, based on an analysis of media reports, information
is available on at least 332 new mine casualties in 2001, of which 133 people
were killed and 199 injured. Media reports tended to focus on military
casualties. Of the 332 reported casualties, 225 involved military personnel or
militants. Of the 107 civilian casualties, 32 were
children.[68] In one incident,
one child was killed and twenty injured when their school bus ran over a
landmine.[69] Due to the
remoteness and lack of transport and communication facilities in some of the
mine-affected border areas it is believed that many civilian casualties are not
reported.
In 2001, reported casualties were not confined to the Jammu and Kashmir
areas. Incidents were reported in Assam. For example, on 31 July, six
Bhutanese nationals were killed and eight injured in a landmine
blast,[70] and on 5 August,
eight soldiers and two civilians were killed when their truck ran over a
mine.[71] Other incidents were
also reported in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Bihar.
In 2002, the media continues to report military and civilian landmine
casualties. Between 1 January and 17 June 2002, 180 landmine casualties have
been reported, of which 99 were killed and 81 injured, including 15
children.[72]
The Indian Army maintains a website with statistics on civilian casualties in
Kashmir. According to the data, in 2001, 133 civilians were killed and 2,120
injured due to landmines, IEDs and grenade
incidents.[73] It is not known
how many of these casualties can be attributed to landmines. However, the
statistics do reveal an increase in casualties from 2000 when it was reported
that 129 people had been killed and 1,258 injured in similar
incidents.[74] In 2002, up to
31 March, 27 civilians are reported to have died and 290 were
injured.[75]
SURVIVOR ASSISTANCE
India has a system of free medical care for all
citizens, however, in rural areas the quality and availability of services can
be problematic.[76] In the
mine-affected area of Jammu and Kashmir the State government has pledged to
improve medical services in all health institutions in the
State.[77] The government of
India has also indicated its support for the rehabilitation of mine survivors
and the role of the Army’s Artificial Limb Center in providing
prosthetics.[78]
Several NGOs operate within Jammu and Kashmir assisting the population,
including persons with disabilities, with medical care, rehabilitation,
education and training.[79] The
NGO ICNA Relief-helping Hand, for example, provides medical assistance through
the Kashmir Surgical Hospital. The hospital provides medicines and surgical
services, and has in-patient facilities, four ambulances, one operating theater,
and sixty branch centers in refugee camps. In addition, there are five Primary
Health Centers in refugee
camps.[80]
The New Delhi-based NGO, Ortho Prosthetics Care and Rehabilitation (OPCAR)
runs camps in mine-affected areas such as Jammu, Kashmir, and Madhya Pradesh, to
provide prosthetics to mine
survivors.[81]
In Jammu and Kashmir, as part of Operation Sadbhavna, the Srinagar-based
15-Corps, in coordination with Jyot Charitable Trust under guidance from NEVEDAC
Prosthetic Center, Chandigarh, is providing artificial limbs to disabled
persons. As of January 2002, 198 persons from Kashmir have been fitted with
artificial limbs, including some of the survivors of the 1971 and 1965 wars.
The Jammu-based 16-Corps has assisted many survivors by providing prosthetics,
including 35 children.[82]
However, it is not known how many beneficiaries of these programs were landmine
amputees.
In
January 2002, an Indian orthopedic team arrived in Kabul, Afghanistan, with one
thousand artificial limbs, which were available free-of-charge for amputees.
The prosthetic legs, fitted with the so-called Jaipur foot, were provided by the
BMVSS charity based in Jaipur. The program is funded by the Indian
government.[83]
DISABILITY POLICY AND PRACTICE
According to the US State Department, with the
adoption of the Persons with Disability
Act,[84] a disabled rights
movement is slowly raising public awareness of the rights of the disabled. The
act provides equal rights to all persons with disabilities, nevertheless, the
practical effects have been minimal in part due to a clause that makes the
implementation of programs dependent on the "economic capacity" of the
government.[85]
The government has announced that compensation will be paid to casualties of
military related explosions. For example, for casualties who are killed the
payment is five lakh rupees (US$10,415), and a maimed person will receive 75,000
rupees (US$1,560). However, for a civilian injured in a landmine explosion on
the border the payment in the event of death is as little as one lakh
(US$2,083), and for a civilian permanently disabled the payment is no more than
10,000 rupees (US$208).[86]
[1] Ambassador Rakesh Sood, Permanent
Representative of India to the Conference on Disarmament, Geneva, at the General
Debate in the First Committee, UN General Assembly, New York, 16 October
2001. [2] Statement by T.P. Seetharam,
Minister (Disarmament), Permanent Mission of India to the Conference on
Disarmament Geneva, at the Second Review Conference of the States Parties to the
Convention on Conventional Weapons, Geneva, 11 December
2001. [3] National conferences included:
the Fourth National Conference, New Delhi, 3-4 May 2001; the First National
Conference on Small Arms and Landmines, Nagpur, 14-15 October 2001; and the
First National Conference on “Humanitarian Aspects of Proliferation of
Small Arms in North East India and its Effects on Society,” Guwahati
(Assam) North East India, 30-31 March 2002. Regional Seminars were held in
Kargil, Jammu & Kashmir, 1 November 2001; in Leh (Ladakh), Jammu &
Kashmir, 3 November 2001; in Imphal, Manipur, North East India, 11 January 2002;
and in Jaislmer, Rajasthan, on the India-Pakistan border, 1 February
2002. [4] Somini Sengupta,
“India’s Land Mines, a Bitter Harvest for Farmers,” New York
Times, Mulla Kot, India, 4 January 2002; “India’s deadly defence:
the 1800 mile long minefield,” The Guardian, 10 January
2002. [5] “Border residents facing
a tough time,” The Times of India, 20 February 2002; “Border
residents move to safer places,” The Times of India, 19 May
2002. [6] India apparently restricted
the movement of media persons in the border area after newspapers reported
landmine casualties. It was reported that local prosecutors may take action
using the Indian Official Secret Act to prevent information about minefields
from being disseminated. “India slaps more curbs on media,”
Frontier Post / APP (New Delhi), 11 January
2002. [7] Binoo Joshi, “Indian
Troops Begin Removing Mines From Kashmir Border Towns, as Was Threat Eases With
Pakistan,” Associated Press (Jammu), 4 July
2002. [8] Kulwinder Sandhu and Anirudh
Gupta “More mine blast as people return,” Tribune (Gatti Masta), 31
January 2002. [9] Ayanjit Sen
“India launches mine accidents inquiry: Mine mishaps are dangerous and
embarrassing,” BBC (New Delhi), January
2002. [10] Somini Sengupta
“India’s Land Mines,” New York Times, 4 January
2002. [11] Jay Shankar
“Kashmir’s wheat fields turned into a basket of mines”, Agence
France Press (Chanduchak, India), 11 June
2002. [12] “India to lay more
mines,” BBC Online, 17 January 2002.
[13] Ministry of Defence Press Release,
“Incident of Mine Blast Along Border,” 7 March 2002.
http://mod.nic.in/pressreleases/content.asp?id=47. [14]
“Anti-tank mine explosion leaves 5 injured,” The Times of India, 24
December 2001. According to another account, one person was injured and two
camels and thirty goats and sheep killed when they strayed into minefields in
the districts of Bikaner and Jaisalmer in Rajasthan. “Mines being laid
along border,” Hitvada (Nagpur), 27 December
2001. [15] “India’s
landmines, a bitter harvest for farmers,” New York Times, 4 January
2002. [16] “Mines maim border
villages,” The Times of India, 9 February 2002. This report notes that
three other people from the same village were injured by landmines between 16-20
January 2002. All were reportedly treated at the government hospital and
provided compensation of Rs. 5,000 (approximately
US$110). [17] “Two hurt in
landmine blast,” Times of India, 19 January
2002. [18] “Aid Given,”
Tribune, 3 February 2002. [19]
“More mine blasts as people return,” Tribune, 31 January
2002. [20] “India to lay more
mines,” BBC Online, 17 January 2002. This report states that mines have
taken additional civilian lives, but no official figures were
available. [21] “Rajasthan: Child
dead in landmine explosion,” UNI (Jaipur), 3 June
2002. [22] “Child killed in wheat
field landmine blast near India-Pakistan border,” Agence France Press
(Jodhpur), 4 June 2002. [23] “One
killed, one injured in landmine blast near India-Pakistan border,” Agence
France Press(Jodhpur), 16 June
2002. [24] “More mine blasts as
people return,” Tribune, 31 January
2002. [25] Rashme Sehgal “Mines
maim border villagers,” Times of India (Amritsar) 10 February
2002. [26] Statement by T.P. Seetharam,
Minister-Counsellor, Permanent Mission of India to the Conference on Disarmament
Geneva, Third Annual Conference of the States Parties to Amended Protocol II,
Geneva, 10 December 2001. [27] Ministry
of Defence Press Release, “Incident of Mine Blast Along Border,” 7
March 2002. The incidents are blamed on “adverse climatic and terrain
conditions...human error...[and in] certain cases, mines and fuzes held in
inventory for a long period did not perform satisfactorily. The Government have
initiated steps to ensure than new mines and fuzes are introduced to replace the
old inventories.”
http://mod.nic.in/pressreleases/content.asp?id=47. [28]
“Three Army men killed in landmine blast,” The Times of India, 26
December 2001. [29] “Mine Mishap
Blows Up 14 Soldiers on Western Front,” Calcutta Telegraph, 29 December
2001. [30] “Jawan killed, 5
injured in mine blasts near LoC,” The Times of India, 30 December
2001. [31] “Hasty mine-laying
costing Army dearly,” The Times of India, 9 January
2002. [32] Online edition of Tribune, 7
January 2002. [33] “Equipment
Failure Blamed for Landmine Deaths,” Jane’s Defence Weekly, 20 March
2002. [34] During the 1965 Indo-Pakistan
war, mines were laid in fertile areas and after the cessation of hostilities,
the lands were demined. Maj Gen Dipankar Banerjee and Mallika Joseph,
Anti-personnel landmines: A South Asian Regional Survey, (New Delhi: Institute
of Peace and Conflict Studies, 1999) p.
6. [35] Landmine Monitor Report 2001, p.
536. [36] Letter to Coordinator,
Pakistan Campaign to Ban Landmines, from Joint Staff Headquarters, Strategic
Plans Division, ACDA Directorate, Chaklala Cantonment, dated 4 April
2002. [37] “Explosives recovered
from Terrorists,” at
http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/india/states/jandk/data_sheets/2001/explosives.htm. [38]
“Weapons captured from Jammu and Kashmir,” at
http://www.armyinkashmir.org/weapons.html. [39]
Suba Chandran, “The Use of Landmines by Non-State Actors in India and
Nepal,” Research for Landmine Monitor, New Delhi, May
2002. [40] Ibid.; and Dipak Mishra
“More Naxal violence apprehended in Bihar: Report,” Times of India
(Patna,) 5 February 2002. [41]
“Assam on high alert after militant attacks,” Times of India
(Guwahati) 28 January 2002. [42]
“6 CRPF men hurt in landmine blast,” Times of India (Siliguri,
Bengal) 27 May 2002. [43] “Five
soldiers killed in landmine blast in Manipur,” Hindustan Times (Guwahati)
8 January 2002. [44] Article 13 Report,
18 October 2000, p. 6. [45] Ibid., p.
7. [46] Article 13 Report, 10 December
2001, p. 6. [47] “PWG tentacles
spreading in state,” The Times of India, 10 January 2002, “PW ultras
surrender, ammunition dump recovered,” The Times of India, 12 January
2002. [48] See previous Landmine Monitor
Reports; also, interview with Manpreet Vohra, Deputy Secretary, Disarmament and
International Security Affairs, Ministry of External Affiars, 25 June
2001. [49] One expert identified the
LTM-76 as Indian-manufactured because: “1. the colourings and markings
are identical to British munitions before 1975, which both India and Pakistan
used. 2. the ‘DI’ marking on the mine is also found on many India
munitions. This indicates the arsenal from which the weapon comes from--in this
case the Dum Dum Arsenal in India.”
[50] Fax to Landmine Monitor researcher
from Sheel Kant Sharma, Jt. Sec. (D&ISA), Indian Ministry of External
Affairs, 2 January 2002. [51] Ramesh
Vinayak and others, “The RDX Files,” India Today, 1 February 1999;
“Arms dump unearthed in Kashmir” (PTI), Times of India¸ 13 June
2001; “Huge haul of grenades, rockets in Kashmir” (PTI), Times of
India¸ 31 May 2001; “Pak agencies change strategy for
‘fidayeeen’,” The Tribune, 19 March 2001; “Seized arms
valued at over Rs.95 cr,” The Tribune, 3 December
2000. [52] This estimate was first
provided to Landmine Monitor by non-Indian government officials involved in CCW
negotiations with Indian officials. Subsequently, current and former Indian
officials have verified the
estimate. [53] Statement by T.P.
Seetharam, Minister-Counsellor, Permanent Mission of India to the Conference on
Disarmament Geneva, at the Third Annual Conference of the States Parties to
Amended Protocol II, Geneva, 10 December
2001. [54]
Ibid. [55] International Committee of
the Red Cross, Anti-personnel landmines: Friend or Foe?, p.
29. [56] Masood Hussain “The
Perpetual Minefield – I: Massive mining operations sound alarm for border
residents,” Kashmir Times (Srinagar), 12 January 2002. Similar incidents
were also reported during the Regional Seminars in Kargil, Jammu and Kashmir, on
1 November 2001, in Leh, Jammu and Kashmir, on 3 November 2001 and in Jaislmer,
on 1 February 2002. See Mine Risk Education
section. [57] Richard Beeston
“Border Peasants Flee As Fields Are Sown With Mines,” London Times
(Jammu), 8 January 2002. [58] Kulwinder
Sandhu and Anirudh Gupta “More mine blast as people return,” Tribune
(Gatti Masta), 31 January 2002. [59]
“India to lay more mines,” BBC Online, 17 January
2002. [60] Binoo Joshi, “Indian
Troops Begin Removing Mines From Kashmir Border Towns, as Was Threat Eases With
Pakistan,” Associated Press (Jammu), 4 July
2002. [61] “India Removes Some
Kashmir Mines,” Associated Press (Jammu), 4 July
2002. [62] Article 13 Report, 18 October
2000. [63] Statement by India to the
Third Annual Conference of the States Parties to the Amended Protocol II to the
Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW), 10 December
2001. [64] Article 13 Report, 18 October
2000, p. 8. The Center is to focus on technical aspects of mines encountered,
activation mechanisms, methods of laying, marking and recording mines, and types
of mine clearance equipment. [65]
Ministry of External Affairs, Annual Report 2001-2002 (New Delhi: Government of
India, 2002) p. 2. In 1996 and 1997, India organized similar camps for Afghan
landmine victims. “Indian orthopaedic team leaves for Kabul,” The
Times of India, 30 December 2001. [66]
“Army orders probe into landmine blast,” The Times of India (Ahwa),
10 January 2002. [67] Kulwinder Sandhu
and Anirudh Gupta “More mine blast as people return,” Tribune,
(Gatti Masta), 31 January 2002. [68]
Landmine Monitor collated data from 35 media reports between 1 January and 31
December 2001. Details of individual reports are
available. [69] “Schoolgirl Among
12 Killed in Kashmir Violence,” Reuters, 8 September
2001. [70] “Indian militants kill
six Bhutanese nationals in landmine blast,” Agence France Press, 31 July
2001. [71] “Tribal militants kill
10 in India’s troubled northeast,” Agence France Press, 5 August
2001. [72] Landmine Monitor collated
data from 33 media reports between 1 January and 17 June 2002. Details of
individual reports are available. [73]
“Civilian Casualties in J&K”,
http://www.armyinkashmir.org/civilian.html (accessed on 8 April
2002). [74]
Ibid. [75]
Ibid. [76] US Department of State,
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Human Rights Report 2001, March
2002,
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2001/sa/8230.htm. [77]
“Mian Altaf for taking dental services to rural areas diagnostic
facilities will be upgraded in all health institutions,” 22 September
2001, at http:/jammukashmir.nic.in/view/sep222k1.htm (accessed 20 June
2002). [78] See Landmine Monitor Report
2001, p. 539. [79] Details on the
activities of these NGOs in 2001was not available to Landmine Monitor. For a
list of the NGOs see
http:/www.kashmirgroup.freeserve.co.uk/ngo.htm. [80]
http:/www.reliefonline.org/kashmir/kashmir.htm. [81]
ICBL, Portfolio of Landmine Victim Assistance Programs, September 2001, p.
61. [82] Masood Hussain, “The
Perpetual Minefield,” Kashmir Times, 13 January 2002; see also
“Artificial Limbs to Militancy Victims and Handicapped Persons in the
Valley,” at
http://www.armyinkashmir.org/arm_people/artificial.html. [83]
Ian McWilliam, “Jaipur foot for Afghan amputees: Thousands have lost limbs
during 20 years of war,” BBC, 4 January
2002. [84] See Landmine Monitor Report
2001, p. 539. [85] US Department of
State, Human Rights Report 2001, March 2002,
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2001/sa/8230.htm. [86]
Anuradha Bhasin Jamwal, “Walking into the Death Trap,” Newsline,
February 2002.
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