Moving swiftly after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s order to reduce troops in the Valley, the first batch of ‘‘deinducted’’ troops will leave from South Kashmir hours before he arrives here tomorrow. A de-induction ceremony is being organised at Anantnag tomorrow morning.‘‘The de-inducted troops are being sent outside the state,’’ said General Officer Commanding, 15 Corps, Nirbhay Sharma who announced tonight that the de-induction process would begin ‘‘early tomorrow morning.’’‘‘We will not be able to give the exact number of troops to be de-inducted or even the area but the first batch will be de-inducted tomorrow,’’ he told reporters.This measure, he said, is being taken after the PM’s announcement. The Indian Express had reported yesterday how the Army was ready with its plan to downsize in the state.Sources said that the first batch of the troops are from the Army’s Victor Force responsible for counter-insurgency operations in South Kashmir.Sharma, however, emphasised that ‘‘we are not going to lower our guard and will be able to deal with the situation.’’When asked whether troop reduction would affect the fight against militancy, Sharma said that the decision taken by the Prime Minister is ‘‘well-considered.’’He said that there was a decrease in infiltration and the ‘‘counter-insurgency grid’’ had been successful in substantially bringing down militant violence.Sharma emphasised that the troop-reduction is not a mere symbolic gesture. But the fact that the de-induction process will start hours before the PM’s arrival is clearly meant to send a message that this isn’t mere rhetoric.Also, the fact that the first batch of the troops leaves from Anantnag is significant given that this is the political stronghold of Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and his People’s Democratic Party. Asked how he, as commander of the Army in Kashmir, felt about the de-induction, Sharma said: ‘‘There is nothing to worry.We will work to bring peace back to Kashmir.’’
