The New Nation - Internet Edition

AFP, Srinagar

Indian security forces shot dead 11 suspected Muslim militants in fighting over the weekend in the disputed Kashmir region, police said Sunday.

Five militants were killed in Poonch district, close to the de facto border between India and Pakistan, a police official said, while four others were killed in the southern district of Doda.

Kashmir is in the grip of a 19-year insurgency against New Delhi's rule that has left more than 43,000 people dead by the official count.

Violence has declined since India and Pakistan launched a peace process in 2004 to resolve all pending disputes, including on Kashmir-a scenic region they hold in part but claim in full.

"Security forces have fought pitched battles with militants at several places during the past two days," a police spokesman said.

"An army officer was wounded and nine militants were killed in firefights."

Officials say clashes between Indian troops and Muslim militants have intensified as militants descend on to the plains to avoid the icy winters of the Himalayan mountain tops.

Multi-stage elections are due to start from Nov. 17 in Kashmir, which has witnessed for the past several months some of the biggest anti-India protests since a separatist revolt against New Delhi's rule broke out in the region in 1989.

Kashmiri separatists demanding an end to Indian rule in the region have called for a complete boycott of the elections.