New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) went back to the Baisaran meadow to carry out three-dimensional (3D) mapping of the area where the terror attack occurred, on the basis of witness statements, according to officials familiar with the matter, Hindustan Times reported.
As per the HT report, a similar technique was employed by the anti-terror agency during the 2019 Pulwama attack also to reconstruct the scene and establish the timeline, precise location, and routes taken by the terrorists. In 2024, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had also used 3D mapping in the RG Kar hospital rape and murder case to track the movements of the prime accused, Sanjay Roy.
An officer, on the condition of anonymity, said that the NIA team visited the spot on Wednesday to conduct 3D mapping. They were equipped with the testimonies and accounts of the kin of the April 22 victims, the pony operators, vendors and other workers present there. The team also had technical data like satellite imagery, video footage of the meadow shot by the probe team, the officer told HT.
The officer emphasised that the 3D mapping was being done as it will give precise, graphic-rich visualisation of the attack site, and it can be used during the questioning of hundreds of individuals without requiring their presence at the site, helping to zero in on the exact locations of everyone present that day, identify the terrorists’ entry and exit points, and find out the radius within which the killings occurred. He added that it would also go a long way in presenting the evidence in context before the courts at a later stage.
Forensic experts accompanied the NIA investigating team as it visited the meadow.
3D mapping was also used during Pulwama attack probe
Another officer spoke about the use of similar 3D mapping during its probe of the Pulwama attack, in which 40 CRPF officers were killed by JeM terrorists. He said that the route taken by Maulana Masood Azhar’s nephew Umar Farooq and suicide bomber Adil Ahmad Dar, as well as the locations where the terrorists procured gelatin sticks, ammonium nitrate, ammonium powder, and RDX, were also mapped.
An NIA team is at present stationed in Pahalgam and has grilled dozens of persons. This includes overground workers of terror organisations, as well as pony guides, vendors, photographers, and people involved in adventure sports activities. They are being quizzed to collect clues about the terror attack that left 26 tourists dead.
