Troops of the counter-insurgency Rashtriya Rifles, para commandos of the Army, state police and the Central Reserve Police Force cordoned off Alaipura, Achan, Hajdarpora, Batnur, Lassipora and other villages and began a door-to-door combing exercise.

This comes a day after a dramatic escalation in militancy, as terrorists kidnapped and shot dead three policemen in Shopian district on Friday, stunning the police force.