Politics

Teach Pakistan a lesson: Border villagers

Teach Pakistan a lesson, say the villagers living along the border

October 5, 2016

While the older villagers are wary of war, the younger gen. wants Pak to be taught a lesson

Exclusive story on border tensions from Ground Zero

Introduction:
[dropcap color=”#008040″ boxed=”yes” boxed_radius=”8px” class=”” id=””]P[/dropcap]akistan may have been playing war games with India but on ground zero it is the rural population which is more inclined towards giving a befitting reply to the neighbouring country and punishing it for constantly disturbing peace in the region.

Villagers living across Hiranagar, Samba and R S Pura sector are the most worried lot as they are waiting to harvest their standing paddy crops.

In comparison to senior citizens the youth is determined to see the fall of a beleaguered nation which has even failed to win the respect of its own citizenry.

Even as uneasy calm prevailed along the International border constant fear is lurking in the minds of the border residents who fear going back in life several years in the event of fresh troop buildup along the border.

Villagers living across Hiranagar, Samba and R S Pura sector are the most worried lot as they are waiting to harvest their standing paddy crops.

They fear if the current cycle of uncertainty is extended further they might end up ruining their future and standing crops in their fields.

Deserted market of Pallanwalla in Akhnoor sector

At the same time these villagers want their government to teach Pakistan a befitting lesson.

Even next of kin of martyred soldiers in the state want to see hard hitting response to silence Pakistan.

“We have managed to rebuild our lives after facing displacements and losing many seasons. Now we don’t want to lose everything all over again in times of skyrocketing prices.We will be ruined, we have seen death and destruction in 1965, 1971 and Kargil wars. Wars never bring peace. They bring heaps of miseries and challenges which we are not ready to face,” ageing border residents in these villages said while praying for peace on both sides of the border.

[dropcap color=”#008040″ boxed=”yes” boxed_radius=”8px” class=”” id=””]A[/dropcap]t the same time the younger generation which is influenced by the ongoing support base enjoyed by the popular govt at the centre wants to see firm response from the Indian side.

Nightmare of another round of border tension haunt him every time Bodh Raj tunes in to his radio.

“We want to see real action against Pakistan. So far our govt has only tried to isolate Pakistan at the diplomatic level but we want them to carry out more surgical strikes to dismantle the terror infrastructure”.

Students, preparing for their board examinations are a worried lot as they fear troop buildup will lead to extension of hostilities.

At present BSF people say tension is building up along the International border with Pakistan even though no fresh ceasefire violation has been reported in the area. BSF officers also say there is no need to spread panic. we are here to protect you.

Indian army jawans patrolling along the Line of Control in Nowshera sector

On the other hand memories of 2002 still haunt many villagers. Several families were uprooted from their villages for a period of over two months. “We used to live in the government school building, it was very tough”, Rajinder said.

In the absence of army movement the village elders regularly step out of their houses and get together to discuss the prevailing situation.

The border residents are still not ready to press any panic buttons. “There is no unusual movement along the border but yes uneasy calm is prevailing along the border with war clouds hovering over the region.

Nightmare of another round of border tension haunt him every time Bodh Raj tunes in to his radio.

He listens to tough posturing by leaders on both the sides of the border. He retires to bed each night praying better sense would prevail and poor people living close to border villages would lead a peaceful life and earn their livelihood.

Border fence along the International border with Pakistan

His elder son Babby deals in dairy business and is gradually picking strands of life. He said since their house fall in the direct line of fire they live under constant fear. “I am not sleeping properly for past several days.”Every time i notice movement outside my house i wake up and make sure everything is in order”.

“Our families suffer a great deal, we loose all our savings once we step out of our houses and live in uncertain times depending on others for our basic needs of food, shelter and clothing.

[dropcap color=”#008040″ boxed=”yes” boxed_radius=”8px” class=”” id=””]S[/dropcap]ita Devi, said since 1965 we are moving out of our houses when border tension builds up. The situation along the border villages in Akhnoor, Chammb-Jourian, Palanwala and Ghagriyal is no different. A large number of villagers who have faced the brunt of border shelling during Kargil war fear that escalation would spoil everything they have built in the last few years.

Naseeb Chand, who lost his house in the Pak shelling said, on May 23, 2002 the Pakistani army targeted their village and flattened it…

“Our village comes in the firing range and in the past also Pakistani army targeted our village with heavy artillery, Gharu Ram, a village elder in Pallanwala said.

The villagers in Kanachak and Samba which witnessed infiltration bids in 2008 are spending sleepless nights these days.

Large number of villagers in Pansar and Manyari in Hiranagar are also living on the edge for past several days. Pakistani army pounded mortar shells in the summer of may 2002 destroying every single house and standing crops in the fields.

Octroi post near Suchetgarh in R S Pura sector of Jammu frontier

Naseeb Chand, who lost his house in the Pak shelling said, on May 23, 2002 the Pakistani army targeted their village and flattened it as most of the houses caught fire and standing crops spread across hundreds of acres of land was destroyed. We were ruined, I lost all my life savings. With God’s grace no family member was hurt and we managed to survive the attack. He said the ceasefire agreement provided them the opportunity to start their lives again. We cannot afford another displacement, Naseeb Chand said.

In village Abdullian, Ramesh Chander said, “we will not move away from our villages. We will support our soldiers and fight with the enemy nation to the best of their abilities”.