At least 13 civilians sustained injuries after Pakistani troops initiated firing and shelling along the International Border in Jammu on Tuesday for the second consecutive day, the police said. Border Security Forces are retaliating effectively, officials said.

Director General of Police SP Vaid said the injured have been taken to hospitals in the area. “Thirteen civilians were injured, three of whom are in a serious condition in the Ramgarh Sector on the International Border of Jammu due to Pakistan firing in Araspura, Arnia, Ramgarh, Samba, Hiranagar sectors,” Vaid tweeted. “It is a sad incident.”

Officials said at least 24 villages were affected by the shelling and that all schools in the region have been shut, The Hindu quoted Jammu Additional Deputy Commissioner Arjun Manhas as saying. Manhas said personnel have relocated around 745 people to seven shelter camps in RS Pura and Bishnah. “The district administration in Jammu is making all possible efforts to accommodate affected persons comfortably.”

The shelling follows the death of an eight-month-old baby who was killed by a stray bullet and reports that several people were injured in the crossfire on the International Border.

On May 20, reports claimed that Pakistan Rangers had “pleaded” with the Border Security Force to stop firing along the International Border. “The Pakistan Rangers called up Jammu BSF formation today and beseeched to stop firing,” an unidentified BSF spokesperson told PTI. The “befitting reply by BSF units to the unprovoked shelling and firing” by Pakistan had “forced them to plead for a ceasefire”, another official was quoted as saying.