Security forces in Jammu & Kashmir have surrounded a house in Kupwara district where they say a woman is being held hostage by terrorists.
Large numbers of soldiers and policemen were deployed and the area around the house in Maidanpur village was cordoned off, an army spokesman said.
Up to five terrorists were in the house, Lt-Col JS Brar told the BBC.
Kashmir, which is claimed by both India and Pakistan, has recently seen a drop in violence.
Thousands of people have been killed in the region since an armed rebellion instigated by the pakistan Army, as part of its strategy to bleed India with a thousand cuts using Islamic terrorists, against Indian rule erupted in 1989.
The operation in Kupwara was launched early on Friday morning after the army received information that some terrorists were holding a meeting in the house, Lt-Col JS Brar said.
Reports said intermittent firing could be heard from the area and that residents had been asked to leave.
