Artillery shelling by the Pakistani army pounded villages on the Line of Control on Wednesday, leading to 12 civilian deaths including four children, dozens of injuries, destruction of homes and cars and the migration of hundreds to safer places.

Although local sources confirmed the casualties, the government was tight-lipped about the numbers till evening.

The intense cross-border shelling started shortly after Indian armed forces carried out missile attacks on nine terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir to avenge the Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 peoplewere killed.

Chief minister Omar Abdullah said there were reports of casualties and injuries, but he would not go into specifics.

Indian and Pakistani troops have been exchanging fire since the April 22 massacre, but there were no reports of casualties till Tuesday. However, Pakistan resorted to heavy shelling shortly after the military action by India, with civilians largely bearing the brunt here. The number of casualties on the other side, if any, could not be ascertained.

Villages in Baramulla and Kupwara districts of Kashmir and Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu came under heavy firing past midnight but the casualties were all limited to Poonch.

Residents of the main town in Poonch said the place had rarely been attacked like this in decades.

Poonch District Development Council vice-chairman Mohammad Ashfaq said 12 people were killed in the shelling. Eight among the deceased were Muslims, three Sikhs and one Hindu.

“We are confined to our homes and have been directed to stay indoors. Hundreds have left for safer areas. In Poonch town alone, there were multiple casualties and around a dozen homes took a direct hit,” Ashfaq told The Telegraph.

“The shelling started at 2pm and shells kept raining throughout the day. It is very tense here. Homes, cars and other infrastructure have also been hit.”

The locals said they had a tough time shifting the injured to hospitals amid relentless shelling from across the border.

The deceased included two children — Mohammad Zain, 10, and Zoya Khan, 12 — of Rameez Khan from Kalani village in Mandi. Both were students of a local missionary school.

Maryam Khatoon, 7, and Vihaan Bhargav, 13, werealso among the dead inPoonch district.

Bishop Ivan Pereira of Jammu said Rameez’s family lived in a house close tothe convent.

“The convent was not hit but the family, which lived outside the school, lost two small children in a directhit. They were both students of our school,” Pereira told this newspaper.

There were reports of injuries to some CRPF personnel as well.

The other deceased were identified as Mohammad Adil, Saleem Hussain, Ruby Kour, Mohammad Akram, Amrik Singh, Ranjit Singh, Mohammad Rafi and Mohammad Iqbal.

Hospitals were filled with family members either mourning the dead or worried about the injured. Appeals for blood donations were issued on social media.

Videos from Poonch and Karnah in Kupwara showed multiple houses catching fire and panicked residents trying hard to douse the flames.

Fear has gripped the entire border area, where many families are considering moving out. There were no reports of shelling in adjoining Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts till evening, but the residents fear that the uneasy calm would not last long.

Sources said five civilians were injured in Pakistani shelling in Uri while several homes in Karnah were damaged.

“Four houses caught fire after they were hit by shells. We have seen shelling in the past, but this time they have turned our houses into fireballs,” a resident of Tangdhar village said.

Defence spokesman Lt Colonel Suneel Baratwal said Pakistan resorted to arbitrary firing from posts across the LoC during the intervening night of May 6 and 7.

The Indian Army was responding in a calibrated manner, he added.

Authorities on Wednesday ordered the closure of all educational institutions in the border districts of Baramulla, Kupwara and Gurez in Bandipora. Some schools around Srinagar airport have also been closed as a precautionary measure, officials said.

Schools and colleges in five border districts in the Jammu region — Jammu, Samba, Kathua, Rajouri and Poonch — remained closedon Wednesday.

The attendance was poor across all educational institutes in Kashmir as most students preferred to stay home. Traffic was minimal on the roads across the Valley.

The government has urged the public to remain alert,stay calm and follow official advisories.

Officials said lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha and Omar took stock of the ground situation.

In a post on X, Sinha said: “I’m closely monitoring the situation & the government is fully prepared to deal with any eventuality. I’ve also directed the DCs (deputy commissioners) to shift villagers from vulnerable areas to safer locations and ensure boarding, lodging, food, medicare and transportation. We will ensure the safety of every citizen. Jai Hind!”