Our country can never repay the debt of being under constant protection of the Indian defence forces and the special intelligence units that are working 24 hours a day, 365 days a year looking for information and trying their best to prevent one terror attack after another. 

We get up in the morning and read about how terrorist groups are intercepted mid-way and how the special forces avert bomb blasts, but barely realise the kind of work that goes into reaching that point. 

To recognise their extraordinary contribution when it comes to the safety of their fellow countrymen, we take a look at some of their greatest, most successful missions.

Here are five times India's Defence Forces averted massive terror attacks in the country:

1. Vehicle-Borne IED Blast Averted - Pulwama (May 2020):

#WATCH J&K: In-situ explosion of the vehicle, which was carrying IED, by Police in Pulwama.

Major incident of vehicle-borne IED explosion was averted by Police, CRPF & Army after Pulwama Police got credible info last night that a terrorist was moving with an explosive-laden car pic.twitter.com/UnUHSYB07C

— ANI (@ANI) May 28, 2020

Security forces detected a car equipped with explosives in the Pulwama district of Jammu Kashmir on May 28, 2020. It was a white coloured Hyundai Santro fitted with an improvised explosive device which was flagged by the Pulwama Police. 

While the terrorists who were planning the attack were able to slip away, the forces managed to trace the car and the Bomb Disposal Squad conducted a controlled explosive search to get rid of the bombs and avert a major terror attack. 

A few houses were damaged due to the blast but the locals were extracted from the venue.

2. ISIS Attack Prevented - New Delhi (August 2020):

Delhi: ISIS operative arrested in Dhaula Kuan area, 2 IEDs weighing 15 kgs defused by NSG team https://t.co/WiyNETsAA3 pic.twitter.com/sBau7oG1fL

— Economic Times (@EconomicTimes) August 22, 2020

Identified as Abdul Yusuf Khan, the ISIS operative was planning to conduct a terror attack in the national capital with two IEDs with 15 kilos of explosives. The terrorist was on his bike when he was intercepted by special forces in Dhaula Kuan. 

The National Security Guard commandos carried out a search operation near Buddha Jayanti Park, retrieved the bombs and defused them at Ridge Road's Buddha Jayanti Park within hours, in a swift manner. 

3. Republic Day, Saved - Srinagar (January 2020):

In a major success the Srinagar Police busts Jaish Module.
Two grenade blasts in Hazratbal area worked out. Major attack averted ahead of Republic Day.Five terror operatives arrested.Huge Expolsive material recovered.

— J&K Police (@JmuKmrPolice) January 16, 2020

India was able to celebrate the 2020 Republic Day in peace thanks to the Srinagar Police that busted a module of Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed on January 17, 2020. 

Amongst the weapons and equipment recovered by the police were a suicide vest laded with explosives, a remote control IED, 140 gelatine sticks and 40 detonators. 

"It appears that they were planning a major IED/Fidayeen attack leading up to 26th January 2020. Moreover, their primary aim behind the attacks was to subvert the return of normalcy in the region. Further investigation is underway to ascertain their role in other similar incidents in the city, and more arrests and recoveries are anticipated," the official statement said.

4. Protected Air Force Base From Blind Attack - Pathankot (July 2018):

© Times of India - Twitter

On a July morning in Pathankot, security forces prevented what could have been a horrible manslaughter, when they countered a Jaish-e-Mohammed attack on an air force station. According to reports, the terrorists were hiding around residential homes in the Cantonment area. 

Aware of a potential attack in the region, the forces had started the search for the group 12 hours before the actual encounter. Two terrorists were shot dead but unfortunately, three of our Air Force personnel also lost their lives in the firefight.

5. Preventing Mass Knifing & Poisoning - Tamil Nadu (July 2019):

BREAKING: NIA arrests 14 more people linked to TN-based radical Islamic outfit Ansarulla, busted following raids in Chennai/Nagapattinam on Saturday. Total 16 persons arrested so far. Ansarulla, NIA claims, was planning terror attacks with aim of establishing Islamic rule

— Bharti Jain (@bhartijainTOI) July 15, 2019

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) caught hold of 16 terrorists associated with the ideologies of Al Qaeda who had formed a terror group called Ansarulla and were preparing to carry out multiple attacks “with the intention of establishing Islamic rule in India.”

The NIA issued a statement after the arrest, according to which the accused were “actively recruiting individuals to strike terror in India and have also been routinely posting videos and other jihadi propaganda material exhorting their supporters to conduct terrorist attacks using various methods including the use of explosives, poison, knives and vehicles, as means of attack.”

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