To protect people living near the border from Pakistani shelling, the central government had in December 2017 approved the construction of 14,460 private and community bunkers in five districts of Jammu, Kathua and Samba.
भारत-पाक में बढ़ते तनाव के बीच सीमावर्ती क्षेत्रों के ग्रामीण भूमिगत बंकर कर रहे तैयार
In view of the increasing tension between India and Pakistan, villagers living near the international border and the Line of Control (LoC) in the Jammu region have started preparing for their safety. They are clearing underground bunkers and harvesting crops in the fields located near the barbed wire.
The government has built thousands of underground safe shelters in the last few years to protect the residents from the firing of Pakistani soldiers.
Officials said that although the incidents of ceasefire violations have reduced since 2021. In the year 2021, both the countries renewed the ceasefire agreement, but security concerns have arisen among the residents of border areas after the Pahalgam terror attacks.
Balbir Kaur, former sarpanch of Trewa village in RS Pura sector, said, “Nobody knows what will happen next. We have decided to prepare underground bunkers so that we can protect ourselves in case of firing from across the border.”
India shares a 3,323 km long border with Pakistan, out of which 221 km is the international border and 744 km of the Line of Control falls in Jammu and Kashmir.
India and Pakistan announced a fresh ceasefire along the borders of Jammu and Kashmir on February 25, 2021, which came as a big relief to the people living around the international border and the Line of Control.
India and Pakistan had initially signed a ceasefire agreement in 2003, but Pakistan repeatedly violated the agreement. The year 2020 recorded over 5,000 ceasefire violations which was the highest number of cases in a year.
To protect people living near the border from Pakistani shelling, the central government in December 2017 approved the construction of 14,460 private and community bunkers in five districts of Jammu, Kathua and Samba. These bunkers cover villages located close to the international border. Later, the government approved more than 4,000 bunkers for the vulnerable population.
Kaur, who is monitoring the bunker cleaning campaign, said that they are ready to face any situation and stand shoulder to shoulder with the army.
She said, “We want our government to take decisive action against the terrorists sitting across the border and their masters. We want the elimination of all those who have brutally killed unarmed and innocent civilians.”
A villager Seva Ram said that women are busy cleaning the bunkers, while the men have decided to harvest the standing wheat crop a few days ago. He said, “We are unarmed soldiers and are always ready to face the enemy.”
Officials said similar reports have been received from villages in Samba, Kathua and Poonch and Rajouri districts.
Mohammad Farooq, a resident of Salotri village near the Line of Control in Poonch, said, “The situation is tense and we stand firmly behind our soldiers as always to teach Pakistan a lesson.”
The border in Jammu region remains peaceful, but the Kashmir Valley has witnessed ceasefire violations for two nights since Thursday. However, there is no report of any casualties in the firing from across the border.
26 people, mostly tourists, were killed in a terrorist attack on tourists on April 22 at a popular tourist spot near Pahalgam in south Kashmir. The attack had sparked outrage across the country.
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