The following is a real story - it is still unfolding in India, even as you read on ...
Pigeon kabootar, uddan fly
Look wekho, asmaan sky
[Old Punjabi rhyme used to teach English]
The hostilities between India and Pakistan - the two nations that have fought three vicious wars in recent decades and are perennially on the verge of obliterating each other with their respective nuclear {censored}nals - have taken a turn for the worse.
An unmanned flying and spying mission - no, it isn't an RQ-4A Global Hawk; neither is it a Predator nor a DARPA Vulture - has been intercepted by ever-vigilant Indians! It is something far more advanced, secretive, menacing and vicious than anything in even the American collection of ultra-modern weaponry and technical wizardry!
It's a kabootar. A pigeon.
[Scary, isn't it?]
It's the latest threat to India, says its high-level Military Intelligence. The nation is in a kerfuffle ... and understandaby so. Lord knows what those Pakistanis have up their sleeves this time!
None of this is just conjecture.
Indian Police Intelligence is currently holding a pigeon under armed guard after it was caught on an alleged spying mission for arch rival and neighbour, Pakistan, media reported on Friday, May 28, 2010.
The white-colored bird - it is not clear whether it is its natural hue or whether it was in disguise - had to spend time at an Indian police station along the country's sensitive border with Pakistan as speculation grew it could be a spy on a mission from the neighboring nation.
Officers say the pigeon was captured by residents of a border town.
They found it "peculiar", said district police chief Chohan.
Description of the pigeon, even in intelligence reports, varies from report to report... probably intentionally; India's intelligence agencies are widely known to often use this strategy to confuse the enemy and the public.
One secret report says that a Pakistani address stamped on its wings is what worried the village residents last week. They then brought the bird to the police.
"It was kept at the police station for a day and now we have handed it over to wildlife (authorities)," Chohan said.
"In an era of spy planes and satellites, the ... police have detained a white pigeon that could have been - the police claim - used as a Pakistani spy," wrote the Hindustan Times in a page-one story Saturday.
The Indian Express newspaper carried a picture showing a man holding the pigeon in his palm in front of a lock-up.
Other reports, also high-level confidential, state that the pigeon had a ring around its foot and a Pakistani phone number and address stamped on its body in red ink.
Police officer Ramdas told the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency that they suspected the pigeon may have landed on Indian soil from Pakistan with a message, although no trace of a note has been found.
Officials have directed that no-one should be allowed to visit the pigeon, which police say may have been on a "special mission of spying".
The bird has been medically examined and was being kept in an air-conditioned room under police guard.
Senior officers have asked to be kept updated on the situation three times a day, PTI said.
Ramdas said local pigeon fanciers in the sensitive border area had told police that Pakistani pigeons were easily identifiable as they look different from Indian ones, according to the Indian Express newspaper.
Further police reports - confidential - reveal that the inmate in cell number 2 at Ramdass Police station is identified by a number - 303-628-4620 - written on the back and a stamp which reads: Islamabad-Wazirabad-Pakistan.
This, of course, is being read by senior Indian police brass as a new tactic by the crafty Pakistan intelligence: to clearly identify the secret spy as emanating from Pakistan.
While policemen are busy feeding this winged prisoner, they are also trying to decipher the stamp and the phone number on its feathers. They do not rule out the involvement of the ISI (Pakistani Intelligence Agency) behind the landing of the bird here.
We have obtaining some disturbing pictures of Abdul - the single name by which he has been identified to date by Indian Intelligence. Some images are reproduced here and show him as brash, unrepenting, contemptuous, resourceful ... and a master of disguises!
"We are not ruling out anything and we are in the process to decode the writing on its back. It could be a messenger of peace also as the bird is often known as. I have informed the state police headquarters," said the Senior Superintendent of Police, adding that they had engaged a pigeon lover from the area who had identified its breed as Pakistani.
The photo taken from a training camp deep within Pakistani territory also suggests that some of these pigeon spies may be Taliban members, as clearly identified by their feathers.
A police officer confirmed that the pigeon Abdul was brought to him by villagers. "I immediately informed my seniors and they told me to keep the bird in jail," he said, adding that they were feeding the bird properly and its medical examination was also conducted.
Scary, isn't it? If not countered with swiftly and firmly, this could potentially lead to the very destruction of Indian civilization as we know it.
Pity!
[from Reports by CNN, Hindustan Times, Press Trust of India, Indian Express, etc. Really! Scout's Honour!]
June 2, 2010
Pigeon kabootar, uddan fly
Look wekho, asmaan sky
[Old Punjabi rhyme used to teach English]
The hostilities between India and Pakistan - the two nations that have fought three vicious wars in recent decades and are perennially on the verge of obliterating each other with their respective nuclear {censored}nals - have taken a turn for the worse.
An unmanned flying and spying mission - no, it isn't an RQ-4A Global Hawk; neither is it a Predator nor a DARPA Vulture - has been intercepted by ever-vigilant Indians! It is something far more advanced, secretive, menacing and vicious than anything in even the American collection of ultra-modern weaponry and technical wizardry!
It's a kabootar. A pigeon.
[Scary, isn't it?]
It's the latest threat to India, says its high-level Military Intelligence. The nation is in a kerfuffle ... and understandaby so. Lord knows what those Pakistanis have up their sleeves this time!
None of this is just conjecture.
Indian Police Intelligence is currently holding a pigeon under armed guard after it was caught on an alleged spying mission for arch rival and neighbour, Pakistan, media reported on Friday, May 28, 2010.
The white-colored bird - it is not clear whether it is its natural hue or whether it was in disguise - had to spend time at an Indian police station along the country's sensitive border with Pakistan as speculation grew it could be a spy on a mission from the neighboring nation.
Officers say the pigeon was captured by residents of a border town.
They found it "peculiar", said district police chief Chohan.
Description of the pigeon, even in intelligence reports, varies from report to report... probably intentionally; India's intelligence agencies are widely known to often use this strategy to confuse the enemy and the public.
One secret report says that a Pakistani address stamped on its wings is what worried the village residents last week. They then brought the bird to the police.
"It was kept at the police station for a day and now we have handed it over to wildlife (authorities)," Chohan said.
"In an era of spy planes and satellites, the ... police have detained a white pigeon that could have been - the police claim - used as a Pakistani spy," wrote the Hindustan Times in a page-one story Saturday.
The Indian Express newspaper carried a picture showing a man holding the pigeon in his palm in front of a lock-up.
Other reports, also high-level confidential, state that the pigeon had a ring around its foot and a Pakistani phone number and address stamped on its body in red ink.
Police officer Ramdas told the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency that they suspected the pigeon may have landed on Indian soil from Pakistan with a message, although no trace of a note has been found.
Officials have directed that no-one should be allowed to visit the pigeon, which police say may have been on a "special mission of spying".
The bird has been medically examined and was being kept in an air-conditioned room under police guard.
Senior officers have asked to be kept updated on the situation three times a day, PTI said.
Ramdas said local pigeon fanciers in the sensitive border area had told police that Pakistani pigeons were easily identifiable as they look different from Indian ones, according to the Indian Express newspaper.
Further police reports - confidential - reveal that the inmate in cell number 2 at Ramdass Police station is identified by a number - 303-628-4620 - written on the back and a stamp which reads: Islamabad-Wazirabad-Pakistan.
This, of course, is being read by senior Indian police brass as a new tactic by the crafty Pakistan intelligence: to clearly identify the secret spy as emanating from Pakistan.
While policemen are busy feeding this winged prisoner, they are also trying to decipher the stamp and the phone number on its feathers. They do not rule out the involvement of the ISI (Pakistani Intelligence Agency) behind the landing of the bird here.
We have obtaining some disturbing pictures of Abdul - the single name by which he has been identified to date by Indian Intelligence. Some images are reproduced here and show him as brash, unrepenting, contemptuous, resourceful ... and a master of disguises!
"We are not ruling out anything and we are in the process to decode the writing on its back. It could be a messenger of peace also as the bird is often known as. I have informed the state police headquarters," said the Senior Superintendent of Police, adding that they had engaged a pigeon lover from the area who had identified its breed as Pakistani.
The photo taken from a training camp deep within Pakistani territory also suggests that some of these pigeon spies may be Taliban members, as clearly identified by their feathers.
A police officer confirmed that the pigeon Abdul was brought to him by villagers. "I immediately informed my seniors and they told me to keep the bird in jail," he said, adding that they were feeding the bird properly and its medical examination was also conducted.
Scary, isn't it? If not countered with swiftly and firmly, this could potentially lead to the very destruction of Indian civilization as we know it.
Pity!
[from Reports by CNN, Hindustan Times, Press Trust of India, Indian Express, etc. Really! Scout's Honour!]
June 2, 2010
