Around 8:00 PM on 26 October, Dev Raj Chowdhary was preparing to have his dinner when he suddenly heard a loud explosion, followed by a barrage of artillery shells in the village of Sai Kalan in the RS Pura sector of Jammu by the Pakistan Rangers.
“There was intense shelling for over 10 minutes initially,” Chowdhary told The Quint. He added, “Cross-border shelling continued until 3:00 AM.”
The RS Pura sector is situated close to the Line of Control (LOC) in Jammu and Kashmir and typically experiences heavy shelling due to its proximity to Pakistan. As soon as the Border Security Force (BSF) responded to the shelling, the villagers started running toward safer locations.
"The entire village was terrorised by the shelling,” said Chowdhary, who is the sarpanch (village head).
The Ceasefire
On 25 February 25 2021, for the first time, a decision on a ceasefire was reached at a meeting between the Director Generals of Military Operations (DGMOs) of India and Pakistan.
The ceasefire agreement had brought relief to the people living in the border areas, allowing them to resume activities like farming and schooling, which had been severely impacted by cross-border shelling. Weddings took place without fear.
However, the ceasefire was recently broken, rekindling fear among the residents. Notably, this marks the second ceasefire violation incident in the same area in October, as on 17th of the month in which two BSF jawans sustained injuries due to firing from Pakistan Rangers.
According to reports, the Pakistani Rangers initiated an unprovoked attack on several Indian posts in the RS Pura region of Jammu's Arnia sector, resulting in injuries to two BSF jawan and four civilians.
Troops promptly responded to the firing. A BSF spokesperson said, “Around 8 pm, unprovoked firing was started by Pakistan Rangers on BSF posts in the Arnia area, to which BSF troops retaliated.”
Fear Returns
Fear has gripped the people living along the LoC following overnight shelling by Pakistani troops. Although the shelling was limited to a particular area, however, people living in other areas of the LOC in the Union Territory (UT) are anxious following the skirmishes.
The villagers in the RS Pura sector rushed toward the government-constructed underground bunkers to save their lives. India shares a 3,323-kilometer-long border with Pakistan, with 221 kilometres forming the International Border (IB) and 740 kilometres comprising the Line of Control (LoC) in the Jammu and Kashmir regions.
Chowdhary said the shelling has completely destroyed their crop (paddy), and people were preparing to harvest it. In Sai Kalan village, a mortar shell landed in the house of Ompraksash Naudyal, causing significant damage to the house.
“The shell landed in the kitchen of Naudyal, but luckily his family was outside the house,” Chowdhary said. He said the entire village had to spend the night in underground bunkers constructed by the government.
It is worth mentioning that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government approved the construction of 14,460 bunkers for J&K border dwellers at a cost of Rs 415.73 crore in March 2018. However, more than five years have passed, and the bunkers have yet to be constructed in many villages near the LoC.
“A number of bunkers are without mounties that is why they aren’t safe. While many other bunkers are still under construction,” Balbir Kaur, Sarpanch of Trewa village told The Quint. She however said that the government has constructed over six community bunkers in five panchayats consisting of over 20,000 population.
“The people took shelter in bunkers and saved their lives,” she said. Kaur further added that over five houses were damaged due to shelling in her village.
Israel-Gaza Fallout Factor
The ceasefire violation occurred at a time when security forces in Jammu and Kashmir were on alert following the Israel-Gaza conflict.
On 25 October, top security agencies in Srinagar conducted a comprehensive assessment of security protocols. The resurgence of potential street protests in the region necessitated the development of an updated security strategy.
A meeting held in Srinagar discussed a fresh security framework, with a primary emphasis on quelling potential street demonstrations.
According to a press release, the security review meeting was held to coordinate and strategise security in the Union Territory in light of the ongoing Middle East crisis.
“…Numerous aspects related to the prevailing security situation in the Union Territory were discussed. DGP J&K, Chinar Corps Commander, and other senior officials from the military, state administration, and security agencies attended the meeting. The situation in the Middle East was deliberated, and various contingency scenarios were discussed,” the statement reads. Adding that, “The nuances of security in the region in relation to the onset of the winter season also came up for discussion.”
It is worth noting that the valley usually witnesses street protests in favour of Gaza during the conflict.
The authorities have barred top separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq from leading Friday prayers at Jamia Masjid in downtown Srinagar. The mosque was also closed for weekly prayers by the authorities, fearing the return of street protests.
Similarly, top Shia cleric Aga Syed Mohammed Hadi Kashmiri was also placed under house arrest for the second consecutive Friday by the administration.
Villagers Bear the Brunt
Dwellers living alongside the LoC bear the brunt of cross-border shelling, with hundreds of civilians losing their lives in border skirmishes.
Over 2,140 incidents of ceasefire violations occurred in 2018, and the number rose to 3,479 in 2019. Ceasefire violations reached an all-time high in 2020 with 5,133 incidents. However, the number fell to 664 in 2021 after the ceasefire.
“The people are bearing the cost of the war. Our children are unable to go to school. Farmers can’t harvest the crops. Everyone is living in fear for the last two days,” Chowdhary said.
(Auqib Javeed is a Srinagar-based journalist. He tweets at @AuqibJaveed. This is an opinion piece. The views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for them.)
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