Srinagar, Jan 01: The administration of Jammu and Kashmir has set the process in motion to declare an area spreading over 3247 Kanals and 17 Marlas of land in Samba district of Jammu province as field firing range (FFR) for forces.

The Union Territory’s Home department has issued two notifications, to set the ball rolling for re-notification of Nandini in Samba district of Jammu province as field firing range for Army. Before 2014, the land was also used for artillery practice by the Army.

According to a notification, the Home department while exercising powers under The Manoeuvres Field Firing and Artillery Practice Act-1938, has defined an area spread over 3247 Kanals and 17 Marlas, situated at Badheri, tehsil and district Samba, for the purpose of carrying out field firing and practice, as per the agreed standard operating procedure, for a period of 10 years.

The Home department has also issued a separate notice of intention for authorizing the carrying out of field firing and artillery practice throughout the area defined under the notification.

As per The Manoeuvres Field Firing and Artillery Practice Act-1938, before any notification is issued authorizing the carrying out of field firing and artillery practice throughout a notified area, the state government shall publish notice of its intention to issue such notification as early as possible in advance of the issue of the notification, and no such notification shall be issued until the expiry of two months from the date of the first publication of the notice in the local official gazette. kno