Kashmir: Not just an issue

"Bombay ka fashion aur kashmir ka mausam...kabhi bhi badal sakta hai."

The first thirty minutes after a person exits the Srinagar international airport, a blurred scenario is presented in front of him. The scenic beauty and tourist attractions are immense, but the whole city has army men at every fifty to hundred meters.



At present, Kashmir is as calm as any other place in India. But the losses of the people in Kashmir have been immense and a tourist needs to look behind the curtain to assess the current situation

Historically, in 1947, Kashmir's population was 77% Muslim and 20% Hindu. After the formation of the Union of India and the Dominion of Pakistan, Maharaja Hari Singh of Kashmir, who was the reigning monarch faced a major dilemma, as to which country to accede to.

In the month of August 1947, the Maharaja's forces fired upon demonstrations in favour of Kashmir joining Pakistan, burned whole villages and killed innocent people. This was followed by formation of rebel groups in Poonch district which were aided by Pashtuns from Pakistan. The aim of this guerilla campaign was to frighten the Maharaja and force him into submission. However, the Maharaja sought Mountbatten's advice who asked him to seek help from the military forces in India. The Indian army drove out the insurgencies from Kashmir but in return a provisional accession to India was made which would be changed by a plebiscite after both the neighboring countries would withdraw their forces from Kashmir.

Abdul Satar (R) comes to Kashmir for
two months in a years in search
of work   

Both the countries had problems interpreting that treaty and no effective withdrawal of forces was made. 1965, 1971 and 1999 saw wars between the two countries over the 'disputed' land of Kashmir. Till date there has been no withdrawal of forces.

"If Kashmir was not disturbed then till now it would have been the Switzerland of the world".

Majority of the people in Kashmir have tourism as their basic form of livelihood. In 2010 the whole state was closed down for a period of four months. However, the current the state of tourism has improved but not as it was prior to 1989. 1989 is the year from which militancy started in Kashmir.

Shikaras are seen parked in
front of houseboats on Dal lake  

Imtiyaz, who is the owner of a houseboat called 'New Sansouci' on Dal lake talks about how strong-willed the people of Kashmir have been. "The people here are very clean at heart. Even if they don't get food for days together, they wont turn to unlawful acts of stealing", he said when asked about the state of tourism in Kashmir. He added that season for tourists lasts for only five months in a year and rest of the year they have to look for alternating means of income. "This helplessness of the people is exactly what extremist groups like the 'Hooriyat' are capitalizing on". He says that if a person who has to feed a family of five, cant help but accept some money that the extremist group offers, just to throw a stone at a uniformed-man. This is what happened all through 2010. However, stone pelting was replied by gunfire and more than 200 people lost their lives. Imtiyaz adds that majority of the people killed were aged between 15 to 21.

The whole issue in Kashmir has resulted in people migrating to other parts of the country, in order to sustain their lives peacefully. However, some people choose to stay back to preserve their cultural heritage and their basic right.

Shahnawaz

Shahnawaz, a horseman from the district of Pehelgam talks about his early life when he lost his parents to a bomb blast. For the past 12 years, from the age of thirteen he has been being a guide to tourists who sit on his horse and see the hills of Pahalgam. "I had got an opportunity to start my own carpet business in Daryaganj, New Delhi. I went there for a year but i came back as the terrorist activities reduced in the state". Shahnawaz proudly added that he had completed his schooling along with earning for his family of two sisters and a grandmother.

The last two hours after a person enters the Srinagar international airport, the whole scenario in Kashmir becomes clear to him. To get in on a flight from Srinagar, a person has to go through four long rounds of security checks and baggage checking, both through x-ray and by hand. The idea is not to let any of the infiltration flow to the rest of the country.

Both Shahnawaz and Imtiyaz had the same reply when asked what do they want for their state. They said that Kashmir should be left alone to its original inhabitants. At they end of the day they want to go to sleep knowing that tomorrow they get three square meals and do not get shot down.