Srinagar: Security forces averted a major tragedy by detecting and defusing an improvised explosive device (IED) near Arampora village on busy Sopore-Kupwara highway in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district. ALSO READ | Sanitary Inspector Arrested In J&K's Kupwara Over Allegations Of Practicing As A Doctor Without Qualification

Police officials said that the IED was detected by the Road opening party of police and army early Monday morning, during a routine road opening drill. The ROP found a suspected object hidden under a culvert and immediately closed the road for traffic.

Bomb disposal squad teams of the Army and police reached at the spot and used metal detectors and sniffer dogs to extricate the IED, which was fabricated in a used 5-KG oil canister. After the recovery, the IED was destroyed safely.

IGP Kashmir, Vijay Kumar while confirming the recovery of IED said that it was defused after being recovered by a joint party.

The highway is the major connecting link for the army's Baramulla and Kupwara garrison and other formations in Kupwara and Handwara belt, and is used frequently by the forces. Daily up and down convoys of all security forces pass through the area and timely detection has prevented a major tragedy.

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Meanwhile, a large cache of arms and ammunition, including a Pika machine gun, was recovered from a terrorist hideout in a joint operation carried out by the police and the army in Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district on Sunday.

The operation was launched after security forces received a specific input about a terrorist hideout in the area.

"Based on specific input of a terrorist hideout, a joint team of the Indian Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police launched search operation in Chirala, Doda and recovered a cache of arms and ammunition including a Pika machine gun, belted ammunition and belt box. Further search operations are continuing," an army official said.