Two Special Police Officers (SPOs) attached to the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Jammu and Kashmir Police went missing on Wednesday in the higher reaches of Dachhan in Kishtwar district, prompting a large-scale joint search by the police and the Army’s Rashtriya Rifles (RR).
The missing personnel have been identified as Babi Chand (57) and Rashpal Kumar (45), both posted at the SOG camp in Kiyar village in the Dachhan area. Officials said the duo was travelling from the Kiyar camp towards an Army post at Dharna-Marwah (also referred to as Dherna/Deharna in some reports), where they were to relieve personnel manning a Temporary Operating Base (TOB) of the Rashtriya Rifles. They failed to reach their destination.
Their mobile phones were initially reachable but were later switched off, raising concern. The area is remote, with poor mobile connectivity and difficult access; parts of the route require walking through dense forests.
Reports indicate that the SPOs were part of a patrol and had been deployed with 17 RR for area domination. Locals reportedly heard gunshots in the forest stretch between Kiyar and Derana/Deharna around the time contact was lost. Some accounts state the officers went missing along with their service weapons.
A joint search operation involving the Jammu and Kashmir Police and the Army’s Rashtriya Rifles was launched immediately. Teams are combing the surrounding mountainous and forested terrain. By Thursday (November 12), the operation had entered its second day and was expanded, with additional personnel, drones, and sniffer dogs deployed to scan inaccessible stretches and track possible movement along trails and remote pockets. CRPF has also been mentioned in some reports as part of the effort. No trace of the missing officers has been reported so far.
Officials have said it would be premature to link the incident to militant activity until the facts are established. At the same time, the development has drawn attention to the security situation in Kishtwar’s remote belt. The district has seen residual militant presence in its forested higher reaches despite successive counter-insurgency operations that have eliminated several active terrorists in recent years. The difficult terrain continues to pose operational challenges.
The search remains ongoing. Further details are awaited as security forces continue efforts to locate the two SPOs and ascertain the circumstances of their disappearance.
