Army Proposes Replacing Pellet Guns with Chilli Bomb, Pepper Shots

The recommendation was submitted to the government by a committee appointed to assess the situation in Kashmir.

Northern Army commander Lieutenant General DS Hooda on Monday said that the Army has recommended use of chilli grenades and pepper shots over pellet guns, the Hindustan Times reported.
 The recommendation was submitted to the government by a Centre-appointed committee set up to assess the situation in Kashmir in the past month.

Alternative non-lethal weapons are available to disperse crowds during demonstrations. The panel sought our inputs and we have suggested sonic weapons, pepper ammo and chilli grenades. The government is looking at these options.

Lieutenant General DS Hooda, Northern Army Commander

Sonic cannons are used worldwide, to disperse mobs by emitting ear-splitting high-frequency blasts.

Pepper guns cause severe irritation to the ears, nose and throat, while chilli grenades developed by Indian military scientists use the world’s hottest chilies, indigenous to the Northeast –bhut jolokia. They can cause far more discomfort than pepper guns.

Unregulated use of pellet guns has left thousands Kashmiris with either partial or complete visual impairment. The government committee was announced in the Parliament by Home Minister Rajnath Singh as the Kashmir violence was discussed.

(Source: Hindustan Times)