2 Years into Ceasefire: Development Catch Up in Villages Along LoC in Kashmir, Residents 'Seeing Peace'
Since 2020, life has been at an ease, kids now play fearlessly, and go to school and there is mobile network connectivity, thanks to a fresh ceasefire understanding between India and Pakistan
In corner of a room, Ghulam Qadir Chalkoo sits with his youngest daughter, who was just a year old when tragedy stuck their family in north Kashmir’s remote Silikote village a decade ago. Today, this village that sits in the lap of mountains is guarded by the Indian army.
It was a sunny day in 2003 when gunfire reverberated in Silikot village and ended the life of Chalkoo’s wife Saja Begum, who was outside her house, located adjacent to the Pakistan army position. Chalkoo found her in a pool of blood from the bullets that hit her abdomen after Pakistan forces violated the ceasefire.
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In 2001, his son, Irshad Ahmad, was getting ready to join the Indian army. His joy knew no boundaries when he received a letter from the Indian Army informing him about his selection. That year in cold November, a shell fired by Pakistan ended his dreams.
Irshad was hit by a mortar shell, and his right leg was shattered, he survived but his dreams ended. For many in this village, life has been a close call.
“Life was different then. One would fear stepping out, we couldn’t cultivate on our land, our cattle would die, houses would come down due to shelling," Chalkoo recalls.
Since 2020, life has been at an ease, kids now play fearlessly, and go to school and there is mobile network connectivity, thanks to a fresh ceasefire understanding between India and Pakistan.
Several houses in Silikote have scares of the past but now development is coming at a steady pace. A mobile tower in the village is connecting them with the outside world.
These two years have bought time for the government to carry out construction in the area. There were no community bunkers earlier but now they are ready to protect lives. People living in these areas would feel stuck inside their unsafe houses.
“Government has made these bunkers now, we used to hide in our houses as shells would fly above us. No one focused in these areas and due to firing no one would construct anything here," another villager Mohd Fareed said whose house still has marks of a shell that exploded above it a few years back.
In this village, a mobile tower has come up, which is providing high-speed internet connectivity, thus helping children take benefits of educational videos.
Saja Begun is busy with the construction of her house. In 2020, Saja Begum lost her house and valuables in a Pakistan shelling. She said her house was in flames within no time. They have been living in a panchayat ghar ever since with her husband.
“My 5 daughters and a son have been forced to live in a Panchayat Ghar but now we are rebuilding and seeing the peace. All this wasn’t possible before 2020 as firing exchange would be intense and there was no guarantee of life," she said.
Experts believe Pakistan cannot afford to violate the ceasefire given its economic condition. India hasn’t let their guard down while upholding the agreement. People here say they expect better days as things are being built for the first time in these villages on the Line of Control.
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