Chandigarh, Sep 12: In a remarkable display of intelligence-driven coordination and operational excellence, the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Punjab Police have conducted a joint operation and recovered a big haul of arms and ammunition, comprising 16 pistols, and arrested two smugglers, the border guarding force said on Friday.

The recovery comes just hours after one of the largest seizures of pistols in recent times, in which two smugglers were apprehended and a huge cache of arms, comprising 27 pistols and ammunition, was seized. Both seizures were reported in the Fazilka sector.

The latest one was carried out by the BSF intelligence wing in close collaboration with the Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) of Fazilka in Theh Kalandar village. The tactically executed operation culminated with the seizure of 16 pistols, 38 magazines, 1,847 rounds and 01 motorcycle, alongside the apprehension of two smugglers.

The operation was set in motion following an intelligence input received by the BSF intelligence wing, indicating a potential smuggling attempt in the border area of Fazilka, the border guarding force said.

This significant operation decimated Pakistan’s larger narco-terror plot, thus effectively dismantling a potential threat to national security.

Earlier, a joint strategic ambush of the BSF and police was laid near Mahar Khiwa Mansa village. After a patient wait of many hours, the ambush team noticed suspicious movement in the wee hours and successfully apprehended one criminal, and recovered 27 pistols, 54 magazines and 470 rounds from a big sack in his possession.

The BSF said after sustained questioning of the accused, the team managed to apprehend his associate from the same village. The accused are residents of Teja Rohella and Mahar Jamsher village, respectively.

Punjab Police DGP Gaurav Yadav said preliminary investigation has revealed that this huge weapon consignment was sourced from Pakistan through a foreign-based entity, intended for use by criminal gangs in the state.

The arrested accused individuals were attempting to deliver these arms to ground operatives of criminal groups at the direction of their foreign handlers.

Mumbai, Sep 12: The Indian equity indices ended the week on a positive note on Friday, maintaining the winning streak for the eight consecutive trading sessions despite geo-political uncertainties.

Optimism over a potential rate cut by the US Fed, positive developments in India-US trade talks and buying in defence stocks fueled the market sentiment.

Sensex settled the session at 81,904.70, up 355.97 points or 0.44 per cent. The 30-share index started trading with a decent gap-up at 81,758.95 against last day’s closing of 81,548.73. The index extended the momentum further amid positive global cues to hit an intraday high at 81,992.85.

Nifty closed at 25,114.0, up 108.50 points or 0.43 per cent.

The national market closed at a three-week high, supported by renewed global optimism over a potential Fed rate cut. Sentiments improved further on reports that the EU may reject U.S. tariff proposals on India for buying Russian oil, analysts said.

Progress in the US-India trade talks is also expected to keep the positive momentum intact in the near term. The defence sector outperformed, aided by the Indian procurement authorities beginning negotiations for six next-generation conventional submarines, analysts added.

BEL, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj FinServ, Axis Bank, Maruti, Tata Motors, ICICI Bank, L&T, Infosys, and PowerGrid were the top gainers from the Sensex basket. Eternal, Hindustan Unilever, Trent, Asian Paint, Bharati Airtel and ITC settled lower.

The majority of sectoral indices settled higher. Nifty Fin Services jumped 184 points or 0.70 per cent, Nifty Bank escalated 139 points or 0.26 per cent, Nifty Auto increased 122 points or 0.46 per cent, and Nifty IT settled the session 107 points or 0.3 per cent. Nifty FMCG fell.

Broader indices followed suit as well. Nifty Smallcap 100 moved 114 points or 0.64 per cent, Nifty Midcap 100 jumped 183 points or 0.32 per cent, and Nifty 100 closed 106 points or 0.41 per cent.

Rupee traded positively with gains of 0.18 per cent at 88.27 as mixed FII inflows supported sentiment.

“The dollar index remained weak below 98, providing additional strength to the rupee, while ongoing trade deal talks with the US also added optimism. Weakness in crude prices offered further minor support,” said Jateen Trivedi f LKP Securities.

Overall, the rupee looks set to gain some lost ground with scope to test 87.75 in the coming days, while 88.50 is seen as a reversal resistance zone, he added.

Mumbai: An alert has been issued after the Mumbai High Court and the Delhi High Court received a threat at the same time, but this threat has turned out to be a rumor. The police did not find any suspicious objects during the search. The bomb blast threat at the Mumbai High Court on Friday turned out to be a rumor when no explosive material or suspicious objects were recovered from here after the search. The Mumbai High Court received a bomb blast threat at 2 pm on Friday, after which the High Court was evacuated and a search was conducted from the judges’ cabin to the chamber. The bomb squad, bomb disposal squad and police searched the High Court premises but no suspicious objects were recovered. The threat was sent through post to the registered office. Along with the Mumbai High Court, the Delhi High Court also received a bomb blast threat. Both the courts were evacuated. A threat was also made to the Delhi High Court through an email, stating that Friday is a holy day for bomb blasts, so the bomb blast will be carried out at 2 pm. After the bomb threat in the Mumbai High Court, the police evacuated the building and during the investigation, the threat turned out to be just a rumor. All the rooms of the court were searched, but nothing suspicious was found. The Mumbai Police has started an investigation into the threat. Recently, the Delhi Special Cell had recently arrested five accused in the case of bomb blasts across the country, two of whom are residents of Kalyan and Mumbra, adjoining Mumbai. In such a situation, explosives and other documents were also recovered from their possession. They are said to be associated with ISIS.