Rajouri's border villagers cautious despite ceasefire

Rajouri, May 14: Despite the recent ceasefire agreement between India and Pakistan, villagers in Rajouri's border areas continue to spend their nights in underground bunkers.

The villagers, who took shelter in these bunkers during the shelling, have not yet ventured out fully to completely resume their normal lives, fearing a possible resumption of shelling from the Pakistani side. "We have no faith in Pakistan's words," said a man from LoC village of Rajouri Keri, who wished to remain anonymous.

"We fear that shelling can resume anytime, and that's why we continue to sleep inside the community bunkers with our families," he said.  The villagers have also raised concerns about the inadequate number of bunkers available to them.  This demand is not confined to any limited number of village but border villagers from almost all the areas near Line of Control (LoC) are projecting same demand.

"The government needs to construct more bunkers to ensure our safety.We can't afford to take any chances when it comes to our lives,”they said. Despite the ceasefire agreement, the villagers remain cautious, prioritising their safety above all else.

Pertinent to mention here that Jammu and Kashmir Chief Secretary Atul Dullo on Tuesday visited Rajouri and informed that around 9500 bunkers are present in border areas of Jammu and Kashmir and government will look into construction of new bunkers as per need and especially in towns affected with shelling.