SRINAGAR: J&K Police have handed over to the wildlife department a pigeon examined Saturday for carrying coded markings, as they found nothing suspicious about it.On Jan 10, a 13-year-old boy from Kharah village in the Akhnoor sector of Jammu, close to the International Border (IB), spotted the pigeon and caught it after noticing unusual stamped markings on its feathers. On closer inspection, the bird was found wearing two coded rings on its legs.
Locals said the ring on the pigeon’s left leg was red in colour and had some text written in Urdu along with what appeared to be a phone number. The ring on the right leg bore the name ‘Rizwan’ along with a numerical code. The pigeon also had a stamped marking, reading ‘Nowshera Club’.The boy’s family immediately informed the local police post at Pallanwala, after which the pigeon was taken into custody for verification.A senior police officer said the markings and codes were examined and nothing suspicious was found. “We believe the pigeon belongs to a local club. Clubs usually mark pigeons in this manner,” the officer said, adding that they handed over the pigeon to the wildlife department on Sunday.In August 2025, BSF personnel had intercepted a pigeon in the RS Pura sector, about 40 km from Jammu, after a note tied to its claw carried a message in Urdu that read, “Kashmir is ours; the time has come, it will come.” The pigeon was also carrying a letter threatening an IED blast.Such kind of activity is not unusual in border areas of Jammu. Usually balloons, flags and pigeons with various messages have been captured near the IB over the past several years.
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