Kashmir: Where the inhabitants request bunkers

Wall of a house damaged by shells and bullets during shelling.

The road that leads to Balkot, one of the last remaining villages along the disputed mountain territory Kashmir, is narrow, small, and rough. After a certain point, it is difficult to traverse by car and accessible only by foot. Balkot lies on the outskirts of Uri, one of the biggest towns near what is called the Line of Control (LoC), the ‘ceasefire line’ that bifurcates Kashmir, and which has been the center of tension between India and Pakistan.

2020 was the deadliest year along the LoC since the 2003 ceasefire. The two nuclear armies violated the ceasefire thousands of times, killing and wounding dozens of villagers and security personnel, according to data from India’s home ministry.

Farooq Ahmed, a fifty-year-old retired Indian army officer, lives in Balkot, one of the last remaining villages in Uri. Uri is also home to the Indian army’s brigade headquarters, making it the largest base in the disputed Himalayan region. In Balkot, as in the few other villages in the area, the population is completely dependent on the Indian army for survival, especially during the peak of winter when the roads are closed due to heavy snow fall.

In November 2020, heavy shelling between India and Pakistan destroyed several houses in the village and took the life of one of Ahmed’s neighbors, Farukha Begum, 45. Her entire home was destroyed, leaving her surviving family homeless. Ahmed broke into tears when he spoke of her. “She was cleaning her attic suddenly a shell hit her and she died on spot,” he said. His house is far enough away that it was not impacted by the attack.

“We live under the silhouette of ammunitions, and most importantly under the ego of two nuclear powers,” said Ahmed. “In their war, common people get trampled from both sides.” His family of five never goes to sleep without thinking about the possibility of hitting shells their home at night.

“The walls of our homes are damaged and still have bullets and pieces of ammunitions stuck in them,” he said. “We are poor people and sustain [ourselves] by cultivating our agricultural land. If we leave from here, how will we live and survive?”

Balkot is home to nearly 700 families, all of whom live in a permanent state of uncertainty. The village sits on the river Nallah Haji Pir, which divides the disputed territory. Decades of violence between Indian security forces and Kashmiri militants has taken a physical and mental toll on the region and its people. Nearly 1.8 million Kashmiris, or nearly half of all adults, have some form of mental disorder, according to a 2015 Doctors Without Borders survey of 5,600 households. Nine of ten Kashmiris have experienced conflict-related traumas. The figures are much higher than in India, according to other surveys.

“We live in a state of constant trauma, and fear psychosis as there is uncertainty around the area. We never know when our life will end because of a sudden escalation. We have lost hope to ever see peace in life,” said Ahmed. “There are so many houses that are locked, they have moved either to Baramulla [a nearby town further away from the LoC], or to other places but that option is not possible for all.”

India’s ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) aims to claim the land and resources of the contested border area, but not the people who live there. The party leadership is in the process of changing the laws that govern the area, which is an electoral battle ground. It has cultivated an atmosphere of fear among residents, and has granted citizenship to Hindu families who wish to settle in Kashmir.

After heavy shelling hit the village in February 2018, BJP Home Minister, Rajnath Singh, issued a statement promising that it would build 14,000 bunkers for residents in the LOC. Eighteen bunkers were supposed to be built in Uri and its adjoining areas, but three years on, construction of only six bunkers is currently underway. Areas like Silikot and Tilawardi have already been provided with bunkers but many border villages, including Balkot, are still waiting for theirs.

Muhammad Siddiq, who has spent his entire life in Balkot, lives just a few houses down from Ahmed. Siddiq has two children, whose lives, he fears, are nothing less than a misery.

“When shelling happens, the danger is such that we don’t even eat our meals. We forget about everything and just keep praying for our lives,” said Siddiq. “We have been requesting the government to provide us bunkers so that whenever there is shelling at least we have a place to hide. But our wishes have never been fulfilled.Perhaps we are not important, or our lives have no value.”

Villagers who can afford to flee the shelling zones have done so. “There are many houses that you will see locked and these people have moved to other nearby towns but it’s not possible for everyone. We cannot leave our land, cattle and houses and move away. We survive by cultivating this land and tending to cattle. If we keep shifting how will we cultivate the land and survive,” Siddiq said.

When I visited Balkot this winter, Siddiq and I walked through the village’s jagged lanes. We noticed that we were being followed by a young student, who told us her name was Maria, that she was twelve years old and lived with her three siblings and her mother. “During shelling, we fear a lot as we don’t have a safe place to live” she told us. “My father also doesn’t live here and is out on duty. We live in danger; a lot of people and children too die here due to shelling.”

Since 1947, tens of thousands of Kashmiri rebels, civilians, and security forces on both sides have been killed in the dispute. India and Pakistan have fiercely contested each other over Kashmir, fighting three major and two minor wars over the territory. The fighting displaced native people and resulted in extreme cycles of violence leaving an unforgettable mark on people, especially children and women. Men are more likely to be killed and arrested; many leave their families behind to participate in the fighting.

“We want to live a normal life and our children want to prosper. They want to go to school, participate in sports activities and become something in life” Siddiq said. “It seems their lives, too, will be entangled with ammunitions, worries, fears, and fighting to survive.”

Indian officials said last year’s ceasefire violations by Pakistani forces represented an increase of 48 percent from 2019. Data from the Ministry of Home Affairs provided to local media under the Right to Information Act showed that 3,386 incidents of ceasefire violations took place in Jammu and Kashmir from January to August 2020. In February 2021,  the Indian Minister of Home Affairs told parliament that there had been 5,133 ceasefire violations by Pakistani forces in 2020, resulting in 22 civilian casualties and 71 injuries. Pakistan reported 3,097 ceasefire violations by Indian forces in 2020, which it said killed 28 civilians and wounded 257 individuals.

In August 2019, India unilaterally took over the full charge of Kashmir by scrapping Articles 370 and 35A of the Indian Constitution. Article 370 granted an autonomous status to Jammu and Kashmir, while Article 35A provided special rights and privileges to their residents.

Article 370, which came into effect in 1949, exempts Jammu and Kashmir State from the Indian constitution. It was the basis for Jammu and Kashmir’s accession to the Indian union at a time when, after winning independence from the British rule in 1947, erstwhile princely states had the choice to join either India or Pakistan. Article 370 allowed the Indian-administered region jurisdiction to make its own laws in all matters except finance, defense, foreign affairs, and communications.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated in his 2019 election manifesto that he would abrogate the special status of Jammu and Kashmir as it is an integral part of India. During his election rallies, he propagated this statement. The entirety of the Jammu and Kashmir region was claimed in its entirety by both India and Pakistan soon after both got independence, but they each control only parts of it. Since 1948, the United Nations has been mediating between the two countries.

In August 2019, India divided Kashmir into two Union Territories, which would be ruled directly by the government in New Delhi. After these new measures went into force, Kashmir was subject to a six-month complete media and communication blackout to curb dissent against the revocation of the region’s special status. The blackout lasted from August 2019 to January 2020. The shutdown in Indian-administered Kashmir was enforced amid concern that the government's decision to revoke autonomy could trigger large-scale protests by people who are already unhappy with Indian rule.The abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A was not only illegal under international law, but also violated the Indian constitution.

In February 2021, India and Pakistan announced another ceasefire deal along the LoC. Though many see it as a significant move to improve relations, the villagers of Balkot are not hopeful.

 “India and Pakistan signed a ceasefire agreement in 2003 to bring an end to cross-border clashes, but the agreement has been hardly followed,” said journalist and security expert Rahul Bedi. “We see how both countries violate the agreements. Ultimately, common people bear the brunt of their actions.”

“In the next 6 to 7 months after situation gets better, we will see a re-alignment of forces on all the borders,” he said. “But what exact shape it will take we will have to witness."

When we were returning from the village to board the cab and finally leave, young Maria stopped us and asked if she could touch the small tripod was carrying, and if we could take her picture. I obliged, and handed her the tripod and clicked some pictures. “When you come to visit us next time, can you get some pictures printed for me?” Maria asked me. “I will hang them in my room that will help me to keep dreaming that I have to tell the stories of my people like you do when I grow up.” I promised I would return with her pictures soon, and we bid goodbye to each other.