Srinagar: A soldier was killed and three others were injured in a gunbattle on the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district, an official said on Saturday.

"A soldier was killed and three others were injured in a gunfight near the LoC in Tangdhar area," a defence spokesman told IANS here.

"The gunbattle which started yesterday (Saturday) and is still underway," he said.

The slain soldier has been identified as Bashir Ahmad. He was the first one to notice militants on the Indian side of the LoC on Saturday. The intruders fired at him and he died because of his injuries.

Police said a group of five to six heavily armed militants were challenged on the Indian side of the LoC on Saturday after they had managed to sneak across from the Pakistani side.

Additional deployments of elite para commandos have been rushed to the site.

(IANS)