Marriage celebrations return to Kashmir’s LoC villages after decades

The LoC residents said that peace between the two neighbours has brought respite as they were spending every day and night under the constant fear of shelling and exchange of fire between India and Pakistani armies.

Ground Report | New Delhi: People living close to the Line of Control(LOC) in Kashmir have begun to take advantage of peace after several decades of special occasions, overnight neighborhood gatherings and marriage ceremonies, following a ceasefire between Indian and Pakistani armies two months ago.

People living in villages along the LoC are heaving a sigh of relief and expect the "peace resolution" between the two armies to continue and guns across the Line of Control to remain silent. Relevantly, the Director Generals of Military Operations (DGMO) of India and Pakistan agreed to abide by all ceasefire agreements along the borders in the union territory from the intervening night of February 24 and 25 this year.

The, residents of the LoC said that there is a relief from peace between the two neighbors as they are under constant fear of exchange of fire and exchange of fire between the Indian and Pakistani armies. They were spending day and night.

New agency KNO quoted Block Development Council (BDC) Tithwal in Kupwara district, Nisada Parveen, one of the places directly facing neighboring Pakistan, which has suffered heavy losses in the LoC shelling, said: The recent settlement has come as a big relief to people who have been facing ceasefire violations for the past several years."

She said people are currently living very peacefully and have returned to normal days with no danger of being killed or losing anything in the untimely shelling. "After so many years normal weddings have returned to the borders, wherein people have experienced occasions like night gatherings, small folk dances, singing shows etc., which are filled with joy without any fear."

ALSO READ: WHY BOLLYWOOD ACTRESS AND FILMMAKER AISHA SULTANA WAS TRIED FOR TREASON?

She said that prior to the agreement, there were no special occasions for people living in ceasefire-prone places as people were constantly threatened with firing and everything would go awry within a few minutes.

Shahid Ahmed, sarpanch of Nambala area in Uri of Baramulla district said that as of now the situation is good and after the latest agreement everything is very stable and people are taking rest. "Wedding ceremonies of people living along the Line of Control (LoC) have become normal. Singing, dancing, cultural programs and above all there are celebrations without any fear," he said.

Aijaz Ahmed Khan District Development Council (DDC) member from Tulail in Gurez sector said that since people are leading a very normal life, everyone is happy with the decision as it is a matter of relief for the border residents. "Festivals of special occasions including marriages, engagements and other rituals have returned with joy and people are enjoying without any fear, which was otherwise missing earlier," he said.

Chaudhary Imran Zafar District Development Council (DDC) member from Mankot in Pir Panjal area said that the recent agreement between the two countries is a welcome step and people living close to the LoC are now living in peace.

ALSO READ: CARTOONIST MANJUL SUSPENDED FROM NEWS 18 AFTER NOTICE FROM TWITTER 

"People had got used to the untimely ceasefire violations and it became a routine, but the special occasions are now being celebrated almost a decade later without the fear of being hit by shells or bullets," he said.

It may be recalled that since 1990 hundreds have been killed in border shelling in the Kashmir and Jammu region, and scores have been left handicapped forever. Apart from this, in the last 30 years, due to shelling from across the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir, houses and livestock worth billions of rupees have also been damaged.

You can connect with Ground Report on Facebook, Twitter, and Whatsapp, and mail us at [email protected] to send us your suggestions and writeups