At least two suspected militants were shot dead by Indian soldiers in a border district in Indian-administered Kashmir on Thursday, police officials said.

Three Indian soldiers were also killed in a gun battle with rebels at a military facility in the early hours of the day.

India's police remain on high alert for terror activities as it nears Independence Day celebrations on August 15, when the country marks 75 years of independence from British rule.

Assailants attempt to breach military camp

At least two assailants, armed with guns and grenades, tried to breach a military camp in the Rajouri district, which lies close to Pakistan.

Indian troops noticed, and a gun battle ensued, as reinforcements and counterinsurgency police encircled the camp, officials said.

The two militants were killed in the exchange, Mukesh Singh, a senior police official, said. Two soldiers were also injured as well as the three who died, Singh said.

The attack came a day after police said government forces killed three rebels in central Kashmir's Budgam district.

India and Pakistan's fight over Kashmir

India formally divided the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two federally administered territories — Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh, in 2019.

Both India and Pakistan have long fought over Kashmir — both claiming it in its entirety, but each controlling only parts of it.

Delhi and Islamabad have fought two of their three major wars over the region.

India has been fighting a separatist insurgency in Kashmir since the late 1980s, with New Delhi accusing Islamabad of backing Islamist militants.

Pakistan has denied those accusations, saying it only offers political support to fellow Muslims it says have been oppressed by Indian security forces.

rm/msh (AP, dpa)