26 lives lost: Is our security broken?

On April 22, 2025, fright struck the peaceable Baisaran meadow in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, shattering its nickname, “Mini Switzerland.” Round 2:30 PM, 3–6 terrorists, armed with AK-47 rifles, opened fireplace on tourists enjoying picnics and pony rides. The Resistance Front (TRF), a proxy of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), claimed responsibility, killing 26 participants—24 Indian tourists from states tackle Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh, two foreigners from Nepal and the UAE, and injuring over 20 others, including an Indian Navy officer and an Intelligence Bureau legitimate. This turned into Kashmir’s deadliest attack for the rationale that 2019 Pulwama bombing, made even extra ravishing as it took space at some level of US Vice President JD Vance’s stagger to to India. The tragedy raises a painful ask: How did our security gadget fail so badly, and what should we attain to forestall such horrors?

A Planned Assault in Gargantuan Daylight hours

The attackers, including Pakistani nationals, likely crossed the Indo-Pak border from Kishtwar to Kokernag, reaching Baisaran meadow, 6 km from Pahalgam’s necessary metropolis. The 3,323-km border, with its rugged mountains and dense forests, is sharp to guard, even with India’s 1.45 million-solid military and 265,000 Border Safety Power (BSF) personnel. Fences, drones, and CCTV succor, however terrorists exploit gaps, the usage of tunnels and local networks. This infiltration reveals why making the border “fright-proof” is so hard, especially when Pakistan’s ISI allegedly helps groups tackle TRF. The attack’s timing, at some level of Vance’s stagger to, suggests TRF wished world consideration, aiming to embarrass India and peril tourists a long way from Kashmir, a key source of jobs and hope.

The build Our Safety Stumbled

The Pahalgam attack exposes gaps in our intelligence and security methods. First, our companies, tackle the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and Analysis & Evaluation Wing (R&AW), can occupy missed local clues about TRF’s plans. Getting legit records from participants in Kashmir is sharp—worry of militants and lack of belief fabricate it hard to invent sources. 2nd, our know-how, tackle phone intercepts and cameras, didn’t fetch the terrorists’ movements. TRF makes exercise of secret apps to hide their plans, and we need greater tools to crack these codes. Third, coordination between J&Okay Police, Army, CRPF, and central companies appears worn. Did they share warnings in time? Reviews counsel some intelligence existed, however it for sure wasn’t acted on rapid ample.

The timing adds one more worry. With Vance in Jaipur and PM Narendra Modi in Saudi Arabia, security turned into tight in utterly different places. Did this keep blind spots in Kashmir? Pahalgam, a tourist hub and Amarnath Yatra inappropriate, should occupy had extra guards, especially after Pakistan’s Army Chief Asim Munir called Kashmir their “jugular vein” days earlier than. TRF’s small, local cells, the usage of rifles in space of bombs, are hard to popularity till they strike. This attack reveals we underestimated their boldness.

The Ticket of Failure

The 26 deaths are a human tragedy—families torn apart, goals shattered. A Navy officer and an IB legitimate amongst the victims highlight the attack’s audacity. Kashmir shut down in negate the following day, with newspapers printing dark entrance pages, displaying the valley’s peril. Tourism, Kashmir’s lifeline, faces a disaster as guests flit, hurting local livelihoods. Vance, Modi, and world leaders tackle Donald Trump condemned the attack, however phrases on my own won’t heal the accidents. Modi within the reduction of short his Saudi day out, and Dwelling Minister Amit Shah visited Pahalgam, promising justice. Nonetheless the attack’s success has shaken public belief in our security.

Steps to Fix the Procedure

We can’t elevate back the lives misplaced, however we must always act to dwell future attacks. Here’s what India wants:

1. Investigate the Failure :  A high-stage probe should discover why intelligence wasn’t acted on and where coordination failed.
2. Strengthen Local Networks: Rating belief with Kashmiris to improve local records, keeping participants that succor security forces.
3. Upgrade Expertise: Exercise AI and advanced surveillance to trace terrorists’ secret communications and movements.
4. Toughen Teamwork: Make certain J&Okay Police, Army, CRPF, IB, and R&AW work as one, sharing every clue straight.
5. Give protection to At ease Targets: Guard tourist spots tackle Pahalgam with extra patrols and swiftly-response teams, especially at some level of large events.
6. 6. Tackle the Offer: Push Pakistan to dwell supporting fright groups, the usage of world stress and talks.

A Wake-Up Name

The Pahalgam attack is a stark reminder that terrorism in Kashmir is soundless a risk. The 26 lives misplaced demand extra than promises—they need motion. Our intelligence and security methods should learn from this failure, repair the gaps, and dwell earlier than groups tackle TRF. Pahalgam’s beauty should no longer be stained by blood over again. We owe it to the victims, to Kashmir, and to India to fabricate our defence unbreakable.

( The writer Girish Linganna of this article is an award-winning Science Author and a Defence, Aerospace & Political Analyst based in Bengaluru. He is also Director of ADD Engineering Substances, India, Pvt. Ltd, a subsidiary of ADD Engineering GmbH, Germany. You would perchance maybe reach him, at: [email protected] )