The number is linked to social networking sites like WhatsApp, Facebook, Telegram or Twitter. The verification code generated by these networking sites is received on the smartphone and the user is ready.

In the past, 'shallow infiltration' has been carried out by terror groups, in which either some army men were killed or damage was caused to an army installation, the officials said.

The boy, who will turn 16 on March 12, was apprehended while fleeing after hurling the grenade at the bus stand that left two men dead and 31 others injured.

In all the instances of sniper attacks, the terrorists used a nearby hillock to carry out strikes on a security force campus when unsuspecting jawans were using their mobile phones to talk to their family or friends.

Zora's family has convinced her that her father has gone for Hajj and will return soon.

The NIA questioned him for over two days before handing him over to the state police.

If this trend continues, 2018 may end up as the worst year in terms of number of youths joining various terror groups, according to the officials.

The crime branch of the Jammu and Kashmir Police, probing the gang rape-and-murder case, sent a sample of her viscera to a forensic laboratory earlier this month to examine the effect of "mannar" candies (believed to be local cannabis) and Epitril 0.5 mg tablets, administered to the girl by her captors.

The application is riddled with careless mistakes and raised doubts about its veracity.

As many as 20 more youths have joined the terrorist groups in the month of May which included Rouf from Ganderbal, a fourth-semester student pursuing a diploma course in government polytechnic, the officials said.

Vishal had claimed that he was in Meerut and had never visited Kathua when the crime was committed.

There has been a steady rise in the number of youth taking up arms in the Valley since 2014 onwards as compared to 2011, 2012, and 2013.

Investigators say the aim of the kidnapping was to scare and drive away the nomadic Gujjar and Bakarwal communities from the Hindu dominated area.

'Is this the message that India wants to send to Kashmir?'

Investigations into the escape of dreaded Lashker-e-Tayiba terrorist Mohammed Naveed Jhatt from a busy hospital has brought to the fore lapses at different stages, especially the failure of the prosecution wing of the Jammu and Kashmir Police as well as the state home department over hurriedly issuing orders for transfer of the accused to a central jail from Kathua in the Jammu region, it has emerged.

The agonising wait for justice notwithstanding, the former navy captain soldiered on, doing low-paying jobs for Rs 20,000 a month and even ploughing farms owned by others to sustain his family. He has lost many jobs because of his past.

The officials said the case was re-registered by the NIA recently and it has initiated investigations into it.

The number is an all time high for the state with south Kashmir emerging as one of the main hubs, providing cadres to terrorist groups.

From the necessity of talking to Hurriyat separatists to appointing a tehsildar, Dineshwar Sharma heard it all during his visit to the valley

The former Intelligence Bureau director added that no one should jump to conclusions before the process of talks with various stakeholders in Kashmir began.