Jammu, Sept. 21 -- Security forces on Saturday intensified search operations to locate terrorists in Udhampur district of Jammu & Kashmir after a soldier succumbed to injuries sustained during a gunfight, officials aware of the details said. The soldier, identified as Lance Dafadar Baldev Chand from Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh, sustained bullet injuries on Friday night when terrorists opened fire on a joint patrolling party of the army and the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the J&K Police at Kanji in the Seoj Dhar forest. He was later taken to the Command Hospital in Udhampur where he died during treatment on Saturday, officials said. "GOC #WhiteKnightCorps and all ranks pay solemn tribute to Lance Dafadar Baldev Chand, who made the supreme sacrifice during an ongoing operation at Kanji, Udhampur on the night of 19-20 Sep 2025. We stand with the bereaved family in this hour of grief," the White Knight Corps said on X. Officials aware of the details said that a search operation was launched in Seoj Dhar, a remote forest area in the higher reaches of Udhampur, on Friday night on the basis of a tip-off. Officials suspect that there are 3-4 terrorists in the region. "On actionable intelligence, contact was established with terrorists at Seoj Dhar. Encounter in progress. Joint teams of SOG-JKP and the Indian Army on the ground," Jammu inspector general of police (IGP) Anand Jain said on X on Friday. The area around the scene of the encounter was kept under tight cordon during the night and a combing operation was resumed on Saturday morning and extended to new areas during the day to track down the terrorists, officials said. "Two helicopters were pressed into service to air-drop commandos of the para forces," an official said on anonymity. Officials said reinforcements were mobilised from both Doda and Udhampur and dronesand sniffer dogs were also deployed to speed up the search operation. This is the second major encounter in Jammu & Kashmir in the last two weeks. On September 8, two terrorists, including a suspected Pakistani national, and two soldiers were killed during an encounter in the Kulgam district. In a separate development, the army and J&K Police recovered an AK series assault rifle, four AK magazines, 20 hand grenades and other war-like stores during a search operation launched in Poonch district on Friday. Jammu and Kashmir lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha on Saturday paid tribute to Lance Dafadar Baldev Chand. Sinha honoured the Indian Army personnel who made the ultimate sacrifice in the ongoing operations against terrorists at Kanji, Udhampur, an official spokesman said. "Salute to the indomitable courage of braveheart Lance Dafadar Baldev Chand, who made the supreme sacrifice for the nation during the anti-terror operation in Udhampur. The grateful nation will forever be indebted to his valour and unwavering commitment to duty," Sinha said. Chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu expressed grief on the death Lance Dafadar Baldev Chand from. The Chief Minister said that Baldev Chand has laid down his life for security of the country adding that we will ever remain indebted for his sacrifice. He said that the state government stands with the aggrieved family members in this hour of grief and would provide all possible assistance to the affected family....