Tag: kashmir

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Siege Day Fizzled Out in London

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Despite the presence of huge Pakistani population, the organisers struggled to muster a decent number to stage a protest against India at central London. The same pattern was repeated at major city centres across the world … reports Asian Lite International

An anti-India protest organised by pro-Pakistani forums in London to mark the second anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370 turns out to be a damp squib as a few turned up at the protest venue in Central London.

More police were present at India House at Aldwych in Central London as less than 20 people arrived to protest against India. Even a half-page advertisement in the London Times failed to invoke any support to the protest.

Anti-India protest organised by pro-Pakistani forums fizzled out

Despite the presence of a huge Pakistani population, the organisers struggled to muster a decent number to stage a protest against India at central London. The same pattern was repeated at major city centres across the world.

Sources told Asian Lite that Pakistani diplomatic missions and affiliated organisation were planning massive protest against India timed with August 5.

Pakistan’s decision to launch a high-octane but doomed Youm-e-Istehsaal commemoration to drum up international support on Kashmir is not hard to fathom. An enraged Pakistan is in a state of denial and delusion. It is unable to digest that it has finally lost the “Kashmir card,” the centerpiece of its foreign policy, which has been snatched by India after abrogating Article 370 and Article 35A.

Pakistan’s Kashmir propaganda offensive is driven by an ultimate nightmare, that J&K’s all-round development will have a massive demonstrational impact–encouraging an uprising in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Gilgit-Baltistan, where poverty and underdevelopment is rife. Already, the recent elections in PoK have triggered a spate of protests. Videos from the region, show crowds shouting pro-India slogans amid the controversial elections.

Having suffered the humiliation of Bangladesh, which emerged out of the erstwhile East Pakistan, Pakistani establishment’s horror would be to see a similar movement building up in the PoK seeking merger with India.

On the ground the situation is going India’s way. Launching a terror counteroffensive, Indian security forces killed 148 terrorists between January 2020 and July 30 inside the valley. This included heads of trophy militants including Riyaz Naikoo, the commander of Hizb-ul- Mujahideen, commander Haider of Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad commander Kari Yasir and Burhan Koka of Ghazwat-ul-Hind .

Pakistan is also aware that far from annexing Kashmir, J and K, riding on massive and game-changing infrastructure projects, is set for a complete physical integration with the rest of the Union.

Anti-India protest organised by pro-Pakistani forums fizzled out

The brand-new Jammu-Baramulla railway line, now in an advanced stage of completion, is the symbol of this resurgent connectivity. The railway once completed will finally connect the picturesque Kashmir valley with the rest of the country, passing through difficult mountain terrain before reaching the foothills in Jammu�the junction that hooks up with the sprawling national network of the Indian railways.

During its route the train will cross over 750 bridges and pass through over 100 km of tunnels. The mighty Chenab River will be crossed at a height of 4314 feet above the river bed, 115 feet higher than the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

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Next-gen controlling ‘family business’ of Kashmir narrative: Report

Since about 2015-16, the ‘family business’ is being passed to the next generation with the help of Pakistani establishment, and vested interests….reports Asian Lite News

The Kashmir narrative is controlled by a set of US/UK-based ‘Kashmiris’ who make a living off Kashmir conflict, DisInfoLab reported. Since about 2015-16, the ‘family business’ is being passed to the next generation with the help of Pakistani establishment, and vested interests.

The Kashmir conflict has become the family business of The Fais, the Thakurs, the Kanjwals, the Ashais, the Fazilis and the Safis, with the show being run by the Pakistani establishment, with help from ‘concerned’ Whites. Only the Kashmiris are missing from the Kashmir narrative, DisinfoLab reported.

The next-gen ‘activists’ controlling the Kashmir narrative are progenies of yester-generation ‘activists’, groomed in best US institutes, but with no worthwhile experience of Kashmir. Their parents had moved to the developed world and set up shops facilitated by ISI agent Ghulam Nabi Fai, Disinfo Lab reported.

Aejaz Dar, son of Md Akram Dar, a registrant of ‘Stand with Kashmir’ also founded ‘Americans for Kashmir’.

‘Free Kashmir’ is a project of ‘Justice for All’, a Jamaat-e-Islami front, having linkages with terror groups and run by Abdul Malik Mujahid.

‘Friends of Kashmir’ is another activism shop set up by Ghazala H. Khan who is associated with the Kashmir Khalistan Referendum Front (KKRF), alongside Gurpatwant Pannun from ‘Sikhs for Justice’, a Pakistani product.

FoK also has links with IHF, run by Sajjad Burki, President, PTI USA, the report said.

ALSO READ: Kashmir has turned a new leaf, exciting possibilities are opening up: Kovind

That SWK was merely a ‘facelift’ was also evident from its Facebook page, which was borrowed from Justice for Kashmir, whose first follower and promoter on Twitter was Muzzammil Thakur — the new darling activist of the Pakistani establishment.

SWK comes to symbolise the face of Kashmiri resistance with Hafsa, Fazili, Huma Dar, etc. (Experts) and Sehla Ashai (Treasurer). It was set up in 2019 as a ‘fresh organisation’ with new faces. However, as is shown, the front is connected with the same ISI-run nexus.

The event organised by British Kashmiris failed to invoke any response in London

These ‘activists’ set up organisations — Stand with Kashmir, Justice for Kashmir, Friends of Kashmir, Free Kashmir, Americans for Kashmir and so on. They host webinars, carry out social media campaigns. They are then amplified by an organised syndicate, the report said.

Muzzammil is not alone. Many other ‘Kashmiri activists’ have come of age: Hafsa Kanjwal, Sameera Fazili, Ather Zia and Sehla Ashai — all living in the US/UK.

Muzzamil was born in Saudi Arabia and lives in London. His love for Kashmir was rekindled by two events — his marriage to Shaista Safi (d/o Ghulam Safi, APHC convener who was removed by Geelani for corruption); and a patronage of the Pakistan House (run by ex-ISI chief). Shaista is a lobbyist at YFK.

ALSO READ: Drug abuse on the rise in Kashmir as Pak facilitates supply from Afghanistan
ALSO READ: Army Helps Selected PM to Spoil Occupied Kashmir’s Future
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Drug abuse on the rise in Kashmir as Pak facilitates supply from Afghanistan

Huge-quantity-of-heroin-was-recovered-after-a-Pakistani-sponsored-terror-module-was-busted-by-Jammu-and-Kashmir-police-in-North-Kashmirs-Kupwara-district-

According to the statistics maintained at the Government Medical College (GMC) Srinagar and other drug de-addiction centres, heroin smuggled in from Afghanistan has become the main drug of abuse. Around 95% of the patients treated or under treatment at different de-addiction centres have been found abusing this deleterious psychotropic drug, a report by Ahmed Ali Fayyaz

Drug abuse is on the rise in Kashmir, with supplies routed through the infamous AfPak region-the combination of Afghanistan and Pakistan, known as the ground-zero for drugs, violence and terrorism. The Jammu and Kashmir Police in collaboration with the Department of Health and Medical Education have set up drug de-addiction centres and treated thousands of patients at all the district headquarters in the Kashmir valley but it has not been able to stop smuggling of psychotropic substances from Afghanistan via Pakistan.

According to the statistics maintained at the Government Medical College (GMC) Srinagar and other drug de-addiction centres, heroin smuggled in from Afghanistan has become the main drug of abuse. Around 95% of the patients treated or under treatment at different de-addiction centres have been found abusing this deleterious psychotropic drug.

At the Srinagar GMC’s de-addiction centre, among those under treatment are a couple married as late as in 2019. The 29-year-old husband with his 28-year-old wife has been found taking heroin through an intravenous route. They occasionally cross paths in the hospital’s corridors outside their contiguous wards.

According to one of the four doctors attending the patients at the de-addiction centre, a large number of the families had admitted two or two members simultaneously for consuming heroin through IV or other routes. “Many of them come in from affluent families who fall in the wrong company and spend a lot of money to acquire this high-priced drug”, says a psychiatrist at the GMC Srinagar.

ALSO READ: Kashmir’s Descent Into Drugs & Criminalisation

“We have noticed a remarkable increase in the heroin abuse in the last two years but we have no means to determine a political reason behind it. It can or cannot be coincidence that the drug abuse has assumed menacing proportions during a combination of political and medical lockdown. Since March 2020, the Covid pandemic has kept everybody indoors. There have been familial implosions. Marriages have broken and students have forgotten about their school cultures. Smuggling and circulation of psychotropic substances has multiplied during the same period”, said a doctor at the Police Control Room in Srinagar.

According to a senior Police officer, 35 kg of heroin, 5 kg of marijuana and 3 kg of brown sugar valued at Rs 182 crore in the Indian drug markets have been seized by Police in the Kupwara Police district-half of the Kupwara revenue district-in the first six months of the current year. The recoveries made by the security forces, particularly the Army, are equally voluminous.

Drugs from Afghanistan via Pakistan have been flowing in through Kupwara and Baramulla districts on the LoC in Kashmir as also through Poonch and Rajouri districts on the LoC and Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts on the International Border in Jammu. “Over 90% of the quantities are smuggled in through conventional routes and methods but at least 10% of the quantities are now believed to be entering through tunnels and drones”, said a senior Police officer in Jammu.

“Until recently, we used to say Udta Punjab. But now we say Udta Jammu and Kashmir ”, said the officer. According to him, 60% of the drugs, particularly heroin, was going all the way to Amritsar, Chandigarh, Delhi and Mumbai and about 40% was believed to be in the local consumption. Some of the officers, not authorised to speak to the media, put it at Rs 1,000 crore a year business.

Those admitted and treated at GMC’s DDC recently include two members of a family, in their mid-40s and the family head’s 10-year-old grandson. The boy is on Opioid Substitution Therapy (OST), a treatment regimen that induces abandonment of heroin and other opium derivatives-highly addictive and with life-threatening consequences. The doctors treating the boy detected that he had been infected with Hepatitis-C virus, a common infection among IV drug abusers. If ignored, Hepatitis-C can lead to liver cirrhosis and prove to be fatal.

The 10-year-old is now under treatment of Hepatitis-C and supervision of a composite team of doctors and psychiatrists including a couple of professors from GMC’s Department of Gastroenterology.

ALSO READ: Drug trafficking to intensify in Pakistan due to Afghanistan violence

Consumption of heroin by syringe for a 10-year-old could be fatal, says a doctor. “But we are optimistic of good results as he has been admitted at an appropriate time. We don’t know how many of such boys and girls have been destroyed in Kashmir or would be still taking these dangerous drugs”.

The boy had seen his father and uncle take heroin through syringes. Out of his curiosity after falling in the company of some drug addicts, he too began consuming heroin and ended up with an infection of Hepatitis-C.

According to a doctor, the age of experimenting with drugs had come down and the number of addicts spiralled in the last five or six years. “We have noticed a remarkable increase in the number of addiction cases particularly in the last two years. Lockdowns and deterioration of the value systems due to the internet and social media have made the ground fertile for the drug menace in Kashmir”, he asserted. An early intervention and counselling, according to him, could save many lives and families.

According to the official statistics, 6,234 patients have been examined and treated for drug addiction at the DDCs in Kashmir since the outbreak of Covid-19 in March 2020. Of these, 4,830 had been found taking heroin intravenously. Additionally, 1,054 were those taking heroin through other routes. With this combination of 5,884 patients, 95% of the drug addicts were found consuming heroin. 70% of them were taking it by syringe.

The Jammu and Kashmir Government had introduced a drug de-addiction policy in the President’s rule in January 2019. It provided for the staff of 15 departments to work in coordination to uproot the menace of drug addiction. While Police, Narcotics and Excise are required to reduce availability of drugs through various measures including crackdown on the supply chain, the departments of Education, Information & Broadcasting and Social Welfare are supposed to lessen the demand. But around the scheduled date of its implementation in February 2020, Covid-19 engulfed the entire country.

There has been no movement forward in the last over 17 months.

(The content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)

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Army Helps Selected PM to Spoil Occupied Kashmir’s Future

They did it again. Pakistan Army’s role in helping selected Prime Minister Imran Khan’s PTI to win is not without interesting sidebars. There is exactly no love lost between the Prime Minister, once a blue-eyed boy of the Generals, and the army. But in the occupied territory elections, both worked for the same result, a PTI win, although motives could have been divergent … A special report by Dr Sakariya Kareem

The Pakistan government, led by Prime Minister Imran Khan, committed typical electoral frauds and violence to gather votes in favour of the ruling party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in the recently concluded elections in Pak occupied Kashmir. The unprecedented level of rigging and violence, betraying people’s wishes, has once again proved Pakistan’s real intentions in the occupied territory–to keep it as a colony of Islamabad.

The army’s role in helping Imran Khan’s party to win is not without interesting sidebars. There is exactly no love lost between the Prime Minister, once a blue-eyed boy of the Generals, and the army. But in the occupied territory elections, both worked for the same result, a PTI win, although motives could have been divergent. The army wanted a particular financier, a PTI politician, to become the Prime Minister. Imran Khan may have had other ideas. The ISI  Station Commander for the region, worked hard for his PTI protege but could not succeed in the end. He was transferred quietly.

Another notable incident which casts a shadow of doubt over the conduct and outcome of the elections is the blatant disregard for electoral rules and code of conduct by PTI’s Minister for Kashmir and Gilgit Affairs, Ali Amin Gandapur. He was barred from campaigning by the Election Commission. But, disregarding the directives, the PTI minister refused to leave the area and campaigned freely. His conduct has been unbecoming. He was accused of offering bribes and inciting violence. But neither the Prime Minister paid any attention to his abominable  behaviour nor did the EC take him to task for violating its clear directives.

Respected English daily, the Dawn, pointed out that it was one of the ugliest election campaigns of recent times. The newspaper editorial said “the tone and tenor of speeches, the intensity of partisan attacks and the level of personal mudslinging was, to say the least, abominable.“ Instead of taking up urgent issues of local concern, the party candidates indulged in damaging rhetoric and “ polluted the air with their toxic brand of politics“.

Neither the PTI nor any of the other parties chose to highlight problems that have been the bane of local communities in the area. A recent Gallup Poll showed what 80% of local respondents were really concerned about–the dismal state of their everyday lives – lack of clean drinking water, electricity load shedding, inflation, inadequate health facilities, unemployment and education.

Dawn and other newspapers termed the electioneering “a street brawl…It was sad to see cabinet ministers resorting to violent and sexist rhetoric and PML-N leaders peddling anti-Semitic language to tarnish their opponents. If this were not bad enough, election day too saw a flare-up of violence and the charges of electoral malpractices.“

Even though the army was deployed to oversee the elections, rigging and violence were rampant. Inciteful speeches and unprovoked violence was allowed to happen while the soldiers and policemen stood and watched. During the election, the PTI cadres monopolised the booths and stopped representatives of other parties from carrying out their responsibilities.

For the common citizens of the occupied territory, Imran Khan too has shown to be no different from his predecessors, overlords in Islamabad who treated them like serfs. The recent election and its outcome proved it beyond any doubt.

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3,841 Kashmiri Pandit youth returned to Valley

Rai was replying to Raut’s question as to whether the government is aware that many Kashmiri Pandits have become insecure in the last few years, fearing that they could be targets of a false flag operation…reports Asian Lite News.

Feeling more secure in Jammu and Kashmir, a total of 3,841 migrant Kashmiri Pandit youth have moved back to the Valley, the government said on Wednesday.

The government also stated that another 1,997 candidates have been selected for jobs under the same package in April 2021, who will be moving to Kashmir soon.

In a written reply to Sanjay Raut in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nityanand Rai, said, “Kashmiri Pandits have felt more secure in the recent past as is evident from the fact that 3,841 migrant Kashmiri youth have moved back to Kashmir where they have taken up jobs in various districts under the Prime Minister’s rehabilitation package.”

Rai was replying to Raut’s question as to whether the government is aware that many Kashmiri Pandits have become insecure in the last few years, fearing that they could be targets of a false flag operation.

The minister explained that as per the report of the relief office set up in 1990 by the Jammu and Kashmir government, a total 44,167 Kashmiri migrant families were registered who had to move from the Valley since 1990 due to security concerns.

“Out of these, the count of registered Hindu migrant families is 39,782,” the minister said.

Talking about the 1,997 candidates moving to Kashmir soon, the minister mentioned that as many as 26,684 migrant Kashmiri youth showed interest of going back to the Valley by applying for 1,997 posts, which were advertised by the Jammu and Kashmir’s recruitment board in December 2020.

The government has also prepared a comprehensive policy to provide residential accommodation to the Kashmiri migrants who have moved back to Kashmir.

A total of 6,000 residential units are being constructed for them at an accelerated pace. Already, 1,000 residential units are being used by these employees.

Approximately 900 such families, including Kashmiri Pandits and Dogra Hindu families, are residing in Kashmir.

“With regard to those who never migrated from Kashmir, the government has allowed their inclusion in the jobs package for Kashmiri migrants. Besides, they are getting all the benefits of government schemes along with others in Kashmir,” the minister said.

The government has taken the necessary steps to protect the life and property of the people, he said.

These include proactive operations against terrorists, identification and arrest of over ground workers and supporters of terrorism, action against members of banned organisations, intensified night patrolling, coordination meetings among intelligence agencies, maintaining high-level of alertness etc.

ALSO READ-Kashmir has turned a new leaf, exciting possibilities are opening up: Kovind

READ MORE-Kashmir’s Descent Into Drugs & Criminalisation

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Ayeena Altaf: 19-year-old miracle from Kashmir

Pic credits Amazon.in

Ayeena Altaf has started writing from a very early age and also became co-author of five books…reports Asian Lite News

A 19-year-old girl Ayeena Altaf from Kashmir has written two books named “Rummaged Runes” and “Moon’s Dust.”

She has started writing from a very early age and also became co-author of five books which include Wizards We, The Sophist My Superhero My Dad, Not Everybody Is Born To Be A Bride, Kuch Unke Alfaaz Aur Hamari Aawaz, Rising Kashmir reported.

Her books are available online at Amazon and Google book store.

“Writing has been my obsession. Still, it is never so natural to prevail in what you want or feel for. My zeal for writing and the harmony guides me in my quest. ” Ayeena Altaf was quoted by Rising Kashmir as saying.

“Of course, nothing would have been possible if the Almighty would not have been merciful enough. I have always stood firm and kept faith in what to strive for,” she added.

ALSO READ: ‘Great Kashmir firewall to prevent terror sympathisers from getting govt jobs’

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Take proactive steps to facilitate return of Kashmiri Pandits: J&K L-G

He also told the officers to ensure that the benefits of Kashmiri migrants must reach all the communities which are falling under the said category…reports Asian Lite News.

Jammu & Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said government officials must take proactive steps to facilitate the return of Kashmiri Pandits who were forced to flee their homes and are now settled in various parts of the country.

At a meeting on Saturday to review the functioning of Disaster Management, Relief, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction (DMRR&R) Department, Sinha said there are many families living in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and other parts of the country and abroad who are willing to return home or register themselves, so officials of the UT government must roll out an extensive exercise to reach out to them through proper means of communication.

“Many people yearn for their old lives and would like to return to their homeland. Some families are well settled elsewhere but may want to come here to pay obeisance to their motherland and get registered as Kashmiri migrants. Work on this with utmost sensitivity and sincerity,” observed the Lt Governor.

It is the government’s responsibility to make sure this dream of thousands of people turns into reality with proactive approach of the administration, the Lt Governor told the officials.

He also told the officers to ensure that the benefits of Kashmiri migrants must reach all the communities which are falling under the said category.

Taking stock of the future deliverables of the department, the Lt Governor directed the officials to take effective measures for completion of works within committed timelines.

Delays in delivering public services and execution of development works won’t be accepted. Action will be taken against the officials responsible for the holding up of the works, said the Lt Governor.

The Lt Governor fixed the deadlines for the completion of transit accommodations for Kashmiri migrant employees across the valley.

While directing for preponing the targeted timeframe for completion of the ongoing construction works, the Lt Governor set November this year as new timeline for completion of Transit Accommodation at Ganderbal.

Directions were also passed for the completion of construction work at Shopian by March, 2022 and at Baramulla and Bandipora by November, 2022.

Timelines need to be adhered to for the completion of construction work of transit accommodations. Any official found responsible for delays shall be taken to task, maintained the Lt Governor.

ALSO READ-How terrorism finds its way in Kashmir?

READ MORE-Flying object repulsed by BSF in Kashmir

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Flying object repulsed by BSF in Kashmir

Jammu is witnessing an increased drone activity….reports Asian Lite News

The Border Security Force (BSF) troops fired and repulsed a flying object along the international border in the Arnia sector of Jammu and Kashmir, officials said on Wednesday.

“On intervening night of 13/14th July, a blinking red light was observed by own troops in Arnia sector at about 9.52 p.m. at height of 200 metres on own side,” the BSF said.

“Alert troops fired from their position towards red blinking light , due to which it returned back. Area being searched . Nothing found so far.”

Jammu is witnessing an increased drone activity.

On July 2, a quadcopter was repulsed by the BSF in the Arnia sector.

On June 29, drone activities were thwarted by the army troops at Ratnachuk-Kaluchak military area in Jammu. On June 27, there were two bomb blasts at the Jammu airforce station which security agencies suspected were carried out using drones.

Meanwhile, a top commander of the terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) was among the three killed in an encounter between the terrorists and security forces in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district, officials said on Wednesday.

“One more unidentified terrorist killed (Total 03). Incriminating materials including arms and ammunition recovered. Search going on,” said a tweet from the J&K Police.

The police identified the LeT terrorist as Aijaz alias Abu Huraira and said he was from Pakistan. Aijaz was killed along with two local terrorists during the encounter.

The gunfight started in the early hours of Wednesday morning after a joint team of the police and army cordoned off the area and launched a search operation on the basis of a specific information about the presence of terrorists.

As the security forces zeroed in on the spot where terrorists were hiding they came under a heavy volume of fire that triggered the encounter.

Inspector General of Police, Kashmir Vijay Kumar congratulated police and security forces.

ALSO READ: How terrorism finds its way in Kashmir?


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The History of J&K’s Mughal Road and Shopian

Pir Panjal range as seen from Banihal, Jammu and Kashmir (Wikipedia)

History of Shopian

Shopian derives its name from a distortion of word shah-payan, i.e. “Royal Stay”. According to local people the Shopian was earlier named as “Shin- Van” meaning “Snow Forest”. It is an ancient known of Kashmir and had an importance due to it being situated on the ancient imperial route, commonly known as Mughal Road, which connects Lahore and Srinagar. The “Holy Relic of Prophet Mohammad (SAW)” is at Khankah Pinjoora. Shopian was one out of six Wazrat Headquarters in Kashmir from 1872-1892 AD.

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Mughal Road

The Mughal Road was originally known as Namak Road (Salt route)before Kashmir was surmounted by Mughal. It was known as Salt route as salt was exported to Kashmir from the Western Punjab through this route. It was a podium road on which travel could be carried out only on ponies and horses. The prominence of Mughal Road was known as prominent Mughal Emperors like Akbar, Jahangir, Shahjahan and Aurangzeb along with their caravans travelled through this route to the paradise of Kashmir. The historic road originated at the Mughal capital, Agra, moving through Lahore to Poonch, Rajouri and then entering the valley. This particular segment of road used to be called as the “Salt road.

Shopian
Shrine representing Sheikh Ahmed Karim’s meditating place (Wikipedia)

Pir Ki Gali

Along the beautiful Mughal road lies the holy and pious shrine of a religiously elevated person named Sheikh Ahmed Karim. An Englishman named Barner Francios, who visited this place along the caravan of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in 1665 described this place to be occupied by Sheikh Karim. He noticed that the Sheikh could perform miracles by producing voices. He produced miracles and would meditate for days and months continuously. The Sheikh is believed to be a ‘living saint’ who still appears on white horse and protects the travellers from any mishappenings. This shrine is not a grave but place of meditation.

Pir Panjal Pass (Wikipedia)

HastiVanj

Along the Mughal road also lies a mountain ridge called Hasti Vanj. Asper Rajtaringini, this is the place where a Huna king called Mihrakul, living in firstpart of sixth century is said to have had thrown 100 elephants from the cliff. As per the legend the king was crossing Pir Panjal with his mighty army. One day he heard the terrifying cry of an elephant who has fallen off the cliff here. The king loved the sound of screeching elephant so much that he ordered 100 elephants off the cliff. Kalhana calls and describes his “another God of Death and rival to Yama”. Today these places of interest stand proudly astride the Mughal Road. The activation and development of Mughal Road has provided new avenues of opportunity for the tourists to visit these historic sites. As also Indian Army along with other security agencies have been working relentlessly to maintain peace and tranquillity in this sensitive region which allows people from all age groups to come fearlessly and enjoy the pristine and natural beauty of this historic land.

HEROES OF KASHMIR

Brig Rajinder Singh, MVC : Brigadier Rajinder Singh Jamwal, was born on 14thJune 1899 in Bagoona village (now re-named as Rajinderpura) of Samba district. After graduation from the Prince of Wales College in 1921, he was commissioned in the J&K State Force in June 1921. He became Brigadier in May 1942, commanded Jammu Brigade, Kashmir Brigade and took over as Chief of Staff J&K State Force from Maj Gen HL Scot on 24 Sep 1947. His father was Subedar Lakha Singh, who also served his motherland. On 21 Oct 1947, the Jammu & Kashmir State Forces were ordered to fight and push back thousands of Pakistani raiders all along its borders. The small troops with limited ammunitions sans any road communication, they fought the raiders tenaciously. Kohla-Domel garrison fell to the invaders the following day. Brigadier Singh, the Chief of Military Staff, lead a column to fight the invaders. Maharaja Hari Singh, meanwhile, ordered a further troop of 100 to assist Brigadier Singh. He had to hold off the raiders till help came after 4 days Hedefended and saved the Uri-Rampur sector with the help of the Indian Army, but not without sacrificing his life in the process.

Lt Ummar Fayaz : Ummar Fayaz was born in Kulgam Jammu & Kashmir, in 1994,and studied at Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Anantnag and the National Defence Academy. He faced several difficulties while in training as people in his home were not supportive of his decision to join the Indian army. However, Fayaz was determined to join, he believed “I will change my Kashmir, I will make it heaven on earth again”. On 9 May 2017 while he was on leave from duty and was also unarmed, he had come to his uncle’s house in Shopian district, Jammu and Kashmir to attend a marriage ceremony in this family. On this night he was abducted from his uncle’s house. Militants shot him twice, and his dead body was found the next morning. Lt Ummer Fayaz is an inspiration for all youth Kashmiris. His valour and courage is worth an emulation.

(This content is taken from therealkashmir.com)

ALSO READ – The story of peace and development in Kashmir

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Mughal Road & Sinthan Road in J&K to open from July 5

Sinha said that the decision has been taken for the convenience of the common people of the Union Territory….reports Asian Lite News

Keeping in mind the interest of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Thursday took the significant decision to open the Mughal Road and Sinthan Road for the general public from July 5.

Sinha said that the decision has been taken for the convenience of the common people of the Union Territory.

He said the reopening of these two roads for the general public will facilitate the smooth movement of people, reduce the distance and travel time besides boosting the overall economy of the region.

“In the past few days, several delegations from Rajouri, Poonch, Doda and Kishtwar had met me and today, we have decided that from the coming Monday, i.e., July 5, Mughal Road and Sinthan Road will be opened for the common public. The opening of these two roads will not only increase the convenience of the people, but will also provide a thrust to the overall economy of Jammu and Kashmir,” Sinha said.

Lt Governor Manoj Sinha

“We have issued necessary instructions to provide succor to the people facing difficulties in this regard. The people of Rajouri and Poonch will now be able to travel to Srinagar conveniently. Similarly, the people of Doda and Kishtwar will be able to come to the Kashmir Division through the Sinthan top route,” he added.

“We had decided this long ago, but in view of the Corona pandemic, the decision had to be postponed for a few days. Necessary instructions have been issued to the administration. Requisite arrangements will be made for checking the vehicles at various places. I hope the common citizens will take advantage of this new development and I also appeal to them to cooperate in ensuring the safety, besides moving conveniently,” Sinha said.

Mughal Road is the road between Bufliaz, a town in Poonch district, and the Shopian district. The 84 km road traces a historic route used in the Mughal period over the Pir Panjal Pass. It connects Poonch and Rajouri to Srinagar in the Valley, reducing the distance between Shopian and Poonch from 588 km to 126 km.

The Sinthan Road connecting Kishtwar in Jammu region with Anantnag in Kashmir Division goes through the Sinthan pass located at 3,800m above sea-level. It reduces the distance for the people who otherwise need to go via Jammu to reach Kashmir.

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