Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has overhauled its entire overground worker (OWG) network in Jammu and Kashmir, according to Indian security officials, following the severe setback the country suffered after Operation Sindoor — the Indian armed forces' retaliatory strike against terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. The restructuring, officials say, is more sophisticated and harder to detect than anything seen before.

Dismantling the Old Guard

The first move in ISI's overhaul was to systematically dismantle its existing OWG network. The old guard, officials explained, had been recruited along organisational lines — Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and Hizbul Mujahideen each maintained separate, non-overlapping OWG cells. These individuals carried ideological ties to their respective outfits and possessed detailed knowledge of leadership structures and local handlers.

Critically, nearly all of them had police records — making them relatively easy for Indian security agencies to identify and monitor. That vulnerability, officials say, is precisely why the ISI moved to replace them entirely.

Teen Recruits and Single-Use Operatives

In place of the old network, the ISI has reportedly begun inducting teenagers aged 15 to 16, including girls, into its OWG ranks. Unlike their predecessors, these new recruits are assigned a single task and then disappear — a deliberate design to minimise their footprint and evade detection.

'The fact that they have no files on them and will not be used for another assignment makes tracking even harder,' an official said.

According to an Intelligence Bureau official, the new OWGs are primarily tasked with transporting small weapon consignments — typically one or two pistols — rather than larger firearms such as AK-47s. Once handed a weapon, an OWG is given only the delivery location. A separate operative waits at that point to receive it and pass it further down the chain.

Weapons Changing Hands Up to Five Times

Officials say that in some cases, a single weapon consignment changes hands three to five times before reaching the person assigned to carry out an attack. This layered handoff system is specifically designed to defeat surveillance and break any traceable chain of custody.

'This constant changing of hands has posed a big challenge for the security agencies. Keeping track of four to five hands becomes difficult,' an official noted. 'This strategy also helps the OWGs evade detection as they hardly leave any trail.'

The choice of pistols over assault rifles is itself telling. 'Pakistan is not aiming for a big hit in the Valley. The very fact that they are choosing pistols over the AK-47 suggests that the aim is to carry out targeted killings and not indulge in a major strike,' officials said. Two recent attacks in Kashmir — in which a head constable and two migrants were killed — are seen as consistent with this pattern of targeted, low-profile violence.

Jungle Warfare and Chinese Communication Devices

Alongside the OWG restructuring, officials suspect the ISI is simultaneously building a parallel jungle warfare capability. Several terrorists are believed to be sheltering in the dense forests of the Kashmir Valley, where thick vegetation and difficult terrain complicate security operations.

These operatives are reportedly using Chinese-made communication devices described as Ultra Sets — devices that combine smartphone functionality with military-grade radio technology. According to officials, these units transmit short encrypted data bursts via radio waves to cross-border relay stations, bypassing local telecom networks and SIM card infrastructure entirely.

'These devices do not talk to each other directly, but send short encrypted data bursts via radio waves to cross-border relay stations and Chinese military communications, which are linked to master servers in Pakistan,' an official said. This off-grid communication architecture, officials warn, significantly reduces the window for interception.

What Security Agencies Are Watching

The combination of single-use teenage couriers, multi-hand weapon transfers, and encrypted off-grid communications represents a qualitative shift in ISI's operational doctrine in Kashmir, according to officials. The overhaul appears designed to exploit gaps in conventional surveillance rather than mount spectacular attacks. With jungle hideouts providing cover and Chinese technology enabling covert communication, security agencies face a more diffuse and harder-to-predict threat landscape in the months ahead.