Kathua, nestled in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, has emerged as a pivotal locus for industrial advancement in recent years. Yet, its burgeoning growth is increasingly imperiled by a recrudescent tide of terrorist activities. Positioned strategically proximate to the International Border with Pakistan, the district hosts an array of industrial enterprises that bolster the region’s economic vitality. However, since 2021, a marked escalation in terrorist incursions has precipitated formidable obstacles, undermining the operational efficacy, workforce stability, and economic equilibrium of these industries.
Industrial Landscape of Kathua
Kathua has been assiduously cultivated as an industrial nexus within Jammu and Kashmir, leveraging its advantageous adjacency to Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to enhance trade and logistical networks. The Kathua Industrial Estate, overseen by the Jammu and Kashmir State Industrial Development Corporation (SIDCO), serves as a crucible for an eclectic mix of small and medium enterprises spanning pharmaceuticals, textiles, cement, and food processing. Stalwarts such as Chenab Textile Mills, a venerable institution in the regional textile sector, alongside various pharmaceutical entities, anchor the district’s economic framework, fostering employment and growth. The Jammu and Kashmir administration has further catalyzed this momentum through the New Industrial Policy 2021-30, replete with fiscal inducements like tax exemptions and subsidies to allure investors. By early 2025, governmental assertions indicate investments exceeding Rs 9,606 crore, engendering substantial employment prospects.
Impediments Arising from Terrorist Incursions
The revitalized specter of terrorism in the Jammu region, with Kathua as a conspicuous epicenter, has cast a pall over these industrial endeavors. Since 2021, the region has endured 31 terrorist episodes, claiming 47 security personnel and 19 civilians, with Kathua emerging as a recurrent flashpoint. A salient example transpired on July 8, 2024, when an ambush in the Machedi area felled five Indian Army soldiers, underscoring the district’s precariousness. More recently, on March 27, 2025, a confrontation in Kathua’s Sanyal belt neutralized two Pakistan-backed terrorists but left five J&K Police personnel wounded, three grievously. This incident precipitated a protracted, multi-tiered operation—persisting into its 12th day by April 3, 2025—to apprehend residual insurgents amidst the district’s forested expanses. These assaults exert manifold repercussions on industrial vitality:
- Security Anxieties for Workforce and Operations: The omnipresent menace of terrorism has engendered a pervasive trepidation among the workforce, particularly non-local laborers integral to Kathua’s industrial fabric. Raids by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in January 2025 targeting overground workers (OGWs) affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and The Resistance Front (TRF)—implicated in assaults on non-locals—exacerbate this unease, prompting labor exodus or demands for augmented remuneration to offset peril.
- Logistical Perturbations: Kathua’s border proximity renders it susceptible to infiltration, as evidenced by the March 23, 2025, sighting of terrorists near the Nursery area, triggering expansive security cordons spanning 6-7 km. Such measures, compounded by intermittent closures of the Jammu-Srinagar highway due to snowfall and security exigencies, severely impede the transit of goods, throttling industrial supply chains.
- Investment Disincentive: The unrelenting security quagmire stifles prospective capital infusion. Despite governmental projections of a 7.06% economic growth rate for J&K in 2024-25, grassroots realities belie such optimism. Public disquiet, articulated through X posts lamenting administrative inefficacy 13 days post the March 27, 2025, attack, erodes investor confidence, rendering the region a precarious venture despite fiscal enticements.
- Escalated Operational Expenditures: Industrial entities are compelled to fortify defenses engaging private security or reinforcing infrastructure thereby inflating costs. The government’s intensified scrutiny of OGWs, with over 27 individuals interrogated in Kathua by April 2025, signals a sprawling terrorist support nexus, amplifying the ambient insecurity for commerce.
Terrorism in Kathua
During the 1990s, when Pakistan-sponsored terrorism reached its zenith, the districts most severely impacted by the insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir were the erstwhile Doda district and Poonch/Rajouri. While the decade witnessed widespread violence across the region, Kathua’s specific involvement remains largely underreported, often overshadowed by more significant attacks elsewhere. Although Kathua likely experienced smaller-scale incidents or infiltration attempts during this time, it was not a primary focus of the insurgency. The district largely served as a transit route for terrorists infiltrating into Jammu and Kashmir, rather than being a direct target of major attacks. The broader wave of terrorism in Jammu during the 1990s included targeted killings and assaults on security forces, but no major, high-profile attacks occurred in Kathua. In contrast, areas like the Kashmir Valley and districts such as Doda and Poonch/Rajouri endured more frequent massacres and larger engagements. As a result, Kathua’s role in the insurgency appears to have been limited, with its involvement mostly restricted to logistical support for terrorists moving deeper into the region.
Two specific incidents in Kathua, Jammu, that involve civilian deaths under mysterious circumstances.
1. Villagers Found in Mysterious Conditions Under a Tree
On February 16, 2025, the bodies of two civilians, Shamsher Singh (37) and Roshan Lal (45), were discovered under suspicious circumstances in a forested area of Kohag village, Billawar tehsil, Kathua district. Their deaths, found during a police search following their disappearance, raised local concerns of foul play, possibly involving terrorists. Although initial reports did not specify the cause or the exact circumstances, the discovery prompted the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate further. As of early March 2025, the autopsy results were still awaited, leaving the cause of death uncertain.
2. Civilians Going to a Marriage Party Killed
Between March 6 and 9, 2025, three civilians—Varun Singh (15), Yogesh Singh (32), and Darshan Singh (40)—went missing during a wedding procession in Lohai Malhar, Kathua, and were later found dead. On March 6, the trio, part of a group traveling from Dehota village to Surag village in the forested Malhar area, separated from the procession around 8:30 PM and became lost in the darkness. When family members alerted the authorities, a search operation was launched, fueled by suspicions of terrorist involvement due to previous sightings of terrorists in the region. On March 8, their bodies were located by a drone in Ishu Nullah, a rivulet in the Inchhu forests, and were recovered the following day. Union Minister Jitendra Singh condemned the incident as a “brutal killing by terrorists,” implying an orchestrated attempt to disturb peace in the area. However, preliminary autopsy reports, released by March 14, showed no signs of bullet wounds or sharp weapon injuries. The injuries observed were consistent with a fall from a 300-foot gorge, suggesting an accidental death with head injuries and vascular damage. The final cause of death remained unclear as forensic results were still pending. The incident sparked local protests and a bandh in Billawar, highlighting growing fears of terrorism in Kathua.
Here is a list of significant terrorist attacks in the Kathua district of Jammu from the 1990s to the present, based on available information up to April 7, 2025. While the 1990s experienced widespread terrorism across Jammu and Kashmir, specific incidents in Kathua during this period are less documented in open sources compared to later years. Due to Kathua’s proximity to the International Border and its forested landscape, it has historically been vulnerable to infiltration and attacks. However, it was not as prominent a hotspot as districts like Kupwara or Poonch during the peak of terrorism in the 1990s. Below is a compilation of notable incidents, including those before 2024:
- March 20, 2014 – Kathua Army Camp Attack: Three terrorists disguised in army uniforms attacked an army camp near Janglote in Kathua, resulting in the death of one soldier and a civilian. After a prolonged gunfight, all three attackers were neutralized. The attack was suspected to be linked to cross-border infiltration.
- July 20, 2015 – Gurdaspur Attack (Near Kathua Border): Although this attack occurred in Punjab’s Gurdaspur district, near Kathua’s border, it is often associated with Jammu region terrorism. Three Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists attacked a police station, killing seven people, including four policemen, and injuring several others before being killed. Its proximity highlights Kathua’s strategic significance as an infiltration route.
- June 11-12, 2024 – Saida Sukhal Village Attack: Two terrorists opened fire indiscriminately in Saida Sukhal village after locals grew suspicious. One terrorist was killed, a civilian was injured, and a CRPF jawan later succumbed to injuries during the encounter.
- July 8, 2024 – Machedi Area Ambush: Terrorists ambushed an Indian Army convoy near Badnota village, killing five soldiers (including a Junior Commissioned Officer) and injuring five others. The attackers used grenades and gunfire before fleeing into a forest.
- January 25-26, 2025 – Bhatodi Village Army Camp Attack: A group of 2-3 terrorists opened fire on an army camp in Billawar around 1:20 AM. While no casualties were reported, the terrorists escaped into a nearby forest, prompting a search operation.
- March 30-31, 2025 – Billawar Area Gunfight: A gunfight broke out between security forces and terrorists during a search operation in Billawar. The exchange of fire began late on March 30 and continued into March 31, with further details emerging as the operation progressed.
Kathua saw an increase in documented attacks from the 2010s onward, particularly after 2014, There has been a notable escalation in terrorist activity in Kathua during 2024 and early 2025, indicating a shift in focus toward the Jammu region. This change may be driven by a perceived reduction in security presence or the revival of old infiltration routes. The list provided is not exhaustive, as some smaller incidents may not be publicly reported, and ongoing operations in 2025 could uncover additional attacks. Kathua’s strategic location near the border continues to make it a key target, with recent years witnessing a significant increase in activity compared to the relatively quieter 1990s.
Critical Analysis
The resurgence of terrorism in Kathua and the wider Jammu region reflects a strategic shift by terrorist groups targeting areas south of the Pir Panjal range. Security experts highlight that the redeployment of forces to the Line of Actual Control (LAC) after the 2020 Galwan clashes has weakened the security presence in Jammu, leaving it more vulnerable. The region’s challenging terrain, including dense forests and poor connectivity, gives terrorists an advantage, allowing them to hide and evade capture, as seen in the 12-day operation in Kathua, where terrorists shifted locations with the help of Over Ground Workers (OGWs) providing food and shelter.
While the abrogation of Article 370 and the reorganization of the state brought peace and stability to much of Jammu and Kashmir, new challenges have emerged. While the Kashmir Valley has become relatively peaceful, areas like Kathua are now under attack. Terrorist groups have renewed their focus on targeting the Hindu-majority regions of Jammu, with the industrial hub of Kathua becoming a key target. Additionally, attacks on civilians, such as the June 9, 2024, assault on a bus carrying Hindu pilgrims in Reasi, which resulted in nine deaths and 33 injuries, indicate a deliberate attempt to disrupt communal harmony and economic stability.
It is high time we address the rising terror in district Kathua because it chokes whole Jammu from all the sides. Kathua Kathua’s proximity to the international border means that any disturbances in the region directly affect the security of other Jammu districts bordering the IB and LOC, which were heavily impacted during the peak of Pakistan-sponsored terrorism in the 1990s. New Delhi must hold Pakistan accountable for its role in fostering terrorism, as failing to do so will only lead to the continued creation of terrorists who will target civilians, particularly in Hindu-majority Jammu. The rise in terrorist attacks in Kathua is a serious concern that requires immediate attention and action.
