Kashmir
J-K administration organizes craft safari tour to boost Kashmir art, handlooms
Jammu and Kashmir Department of Handicrafts and Handloom on Sunday organised a craft safari tour in Srinagar's Eidgah to boost Kashmir art and promote artisans work.
During this craft safari tour, the Director of Handicraft along with other officials, tour operators, hoteliers, houseboat owners, businessmen and civil society members visited many workshops where the artisan community are doing their daily craftwork, reports ANI.
Tourists also visit the workshops including wood carving, crewel working, chain stitches, Sozni caps made by pashmina and spinning units where women prepare cotton for pashmina shawls.
Read: Indian man beaten to death inside historic Sikh temple
The unique and amazing hand works of artisans are famous across the globe and have a good international market. But for the last thirty years of insurgency and overall disturbing atmosphere Kashmir art and artisan community faces a lot of hardships.
So, to revive the old aged rich craft government starts a unique type of activity titled craft tours or craft safari walk in old Srinagar where such type of artwork is going on and maximum artisan communities are living there.
Recently, Srinagar city also made entry in United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) list through old aged rich cultural, traditional art and craft.
Speaking to ANI, Mehmood Ahmad Shah, Director of Handicraft Kashmir said, "Well Srinagar city is very famous culturally and traditionally and this old aged rich craft has huge importance. Recently Srinagar city made an entry into the UNESCO heritage list due to its art and craft. So the purpose of this special craft safari is to restore the glory of this centuries-old and rich art and promote Kashmir art and artisan community."
He further said as Kashmir is a tourist place it is important to promote and show diversity in art and craft in the valley. Such kinds of tours empower artisans to work.
"Efforts are aimed at educating tourists about the efforts these artisans put in place by involving tour and travel fraternity and tourism department," said Shah.
The artisan community also appreciates the department of handicraft to start this unique initiative in the shape of this craft safari tour and they hope that in future with the help of such types of steps Kashmir art will be promoted and artisans will get some benefits.
A wood carving artist, Mudasir said, "I think this is a highly appreciated step taken by the Department of Handicrafts and Handloom to promote the Kashmiri art. We are in this business for the last 200 years and I am associated with this for the last 20 years but this is beyond expectation. Because of our rich art culture recently Kashmir made it the list of UNESCO. I think if the government continues to take such steps like art safari then artisan feel that something is happening for them too. They feel motivated."
Mohsin Fayaz, a Sozni work artisan said that with the art safari they getting recognition.
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"This is a very good initiative. From such steps, our crafts get recognition in the market and artisans also get recognition from such tours. There should more such tours for us," said Fayaz.
A Crewelwork artisan, Shaista Bilal said this is a very important step especially for women, with this they can earn.
Mohsina, a Pashmina artisan said, "This is a very good step as it will also develop our culture. Old artisan work will also get recognition with such an art safari. Women who are coming here to work were setting unemployed at their home and were doing nothing for the last few years but because of the safari they are now getting jobs."
Mohsina further said that government should always take such steps to promote Kashmiri culture, art and people's work.
Pakistan army helicopter crashes in Kashmir; 2 pilots killed
A Pakistani army helicopter crashed on Monday in bad weather in the Pakistan-administered section of disputed Kashmir, killing the two pilots on board, the military said.
A statement from the military said the helicopter went down on the Siachen glacier, one of the world’s longest mountain glaciers, located in the Karakoram Range, and often referred to as the “highest battleground on earth” because of the wars that Pakistan and India have fought over the Himalayan region of Kashmir.
Also read: Resistance leader’s death deepens Kashmir strife
Rescue helicopters and troops have been dispatched to Siachen, the military said. No further details on the crash were immediately available. The two pilots were identified as Maj. Irfan Bercha and Maj. Raja Zeeshan Jahanzeb.
Siachen is known for tragedies, a desolate place where more troops have died from avalanches or bitter cold than in combat. Since gaining independence from Britain in 1947, Pakistan and India have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir.
Also read: Wave of killings triggers memories of dark past in Kashmir
Black Day observed to denounce Pak-led attack in Kashmir in 1947
Pro-liberation forces and liberal minded NGOs on Friday organised various programmes to mark the Black Day when Pakistan-led tribal forces attacked the innocent Kashmiri population in 1947 to take control of Jammu & Kashmir under code name ‘Operation Gulmarg’.
The event drew parallel to the 1971 Genocide under code name ‘Operation Searchlight’ by Pak Army in Bangladesh, said a media release.
Rationalism and Liberalism Practice Forum, Bangladesh Organised a seminar on “Black Day - Invasion of Kashmir by Pakistan in 1947” at Dhaka Reporters Unity which was attended by more than 100 participants. Banners and placards condemning the massacre in Kashmir were displayed in the seminar hall.
Open Dialogue, Bangladesh formed a human chain on ‘Black Day’ with banners ‘Disgusting Blueprint of Pakistan Army’ in front of Pakistan High Commission in Dhaka around 3pm, said the media release.
Read: Wave of killings triggers memories of dark past in Kashmir
Through the human chain Pak Army’s atrocities towards women, children, plunder and loot were highlighted in posters/banners with Indicative slogans such as ‘KASHMIR INVASION-PAKISTAN’S PRE-PLANNED ATTACK, EXECUTED BY ARMY & TRIBAL INVADERS IN UNISON’ ; ‘INVADERS PLAYING VICTIMS- PAKISTAN IS THE BUTCHER OF JAMMU & KASHMIR’ ; ‘PAKISTAN’S HENIOUS CONSPIRACY- 1947 AND 1971 GENOCIDE’ etc.
A street play was also organized in front of the National Press Club to highlight the Black Day - Pak Army’s atrocities on innocent Kashmiri people by Pakistan-led tribal forces under the code name ‘Operation Gulmarg’.
Bangladesh Social Activists Forum (BSAF) formed a human chain to mark the ‘Black Day’ at Hadis Park, Khulna and Rajshahi University.
The participants were seen wearing T-shirts with ‘BLACK DAY marked on them as a statement of protest against then killings of Innocent Kashmiris in 1947 and Genocide in 1971.
Through the human chain Pak Army’s atrocities were highlighted, Indicative slogans both in English and Bengali were flashed in posters/banners against Pakistan’s nefarious act. Later, the participants formed a bike rally and moved around the city to spread the message.
Read: Resistance leader’s death deepens Kashmir strife
Members of Swadhinata Sangram Parishad gathered in front of Pakistan High Commission, Dhaka at 8am to participate in a demonstration against Pak Army genocide in Kashmir on October 22, 1947, Pak genocide in Bangladesh (March 25, 1971) and killing of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (August 15, 1975) and Pak-backed Taliban atrocities in Afghanistan (2021).
The members held posters, banners stating the above and urging Pakistan to apologise.
Muktijoddha Mancha organised a photo exhibition, seminar and screening of documentary in front of National Museum, Shahbag, Dhaka University area, on the same cause.
Wave of killings triggers memories of dark past in Kashmir
The Kashmiri Hindu activist was listening to religious hymns on his cellphone when he was interrupted by a tragic WhatsApp message. It brought news of a fatal shooting of a prominent chemist from his community, just a few miles from the activist’s home in Srinagar, the largest city in Indian-controlled Kashmir.
Sanjay Tickoo, 54, anxiously bolted the gate of his house and gathered his family in the dining room. His phone kept buzzing with calls from frightened minority community members.
Within two hours of the killing of Makhan Lal Bindroo on Oct. 5, assailants shot and killed another Hindu man, a street vendor from India’s eastern state of Bihar, and in a separate shooting a native Muslim taxi driver. Two days later, two teachers - one Hindu and one Sikh - were shot inside a school on the outskirts of Srinagar.
The killings led to widespread unease, particularly among the region’s religious minority Hindus, locally known as Pandits, an estimated 200,000 of whom fled Kashmir after an anti-India rebellion erupted in 1989.Tickoo, who like the chemist and some 800 other Pandit families had chosen to stay behind to live with their Muslim neighbors, and other prominent Hindus were swiftly relocated to secured accommodations. He was later moved to a fortified Hindu temple guarded by paramilitary soldiers in downtown Srinagar, the urban heartland of anti-India sentiment.
“I have seen death and destruction from close quarters. But I have never felt as insecure, as fearful all my life,” Tickoo said. “The killings spread panic faster than the virus.”
The chemist Bindroo’s killing was the first in 18 years of a local Hindu from this tiny community, whose people chose not to migrate from the strife-torn region. Fearing more such attacks, authorities offered leave to nearly 4,000 Hindu employees who had returned to the region after 2010 as part of a government resettlement plan that provided them jobs and housing.
Tickoo again chose to stay, but nearly 1,800 Hindu employees left the Kashmir Valley after the killings. It brought back memories of the 1990s, which saw the flight of most local Hindus to the region’s Jammu plains and to other parts of Hindu-majority India amid a spate of killings that targeted the community.
The killings seem to have “triggered memory that resonates with earlier history and mass displacement of Pandits,” said Ankur Datta, who studied Pandit migrant camps for his doctoral research and now teaches anthropology at South Asian University in New Delhi.
The killings were widely condemned by both pro- and anti-India Kashmiri politicians. In a sweeping crackdown, government forces questioned over 1,000 people in an attempt to stem more violence. Police blamed rebel group The Resistance Front, or TRF, for the killings. The region’s top police officer Dilbag Singh described the attacks as a “conspiracy to create terror and communal rift.”
In a statement on social media, TRF claimed the group was targeting those working for Indian authorities and was not picking targets based on faith. The rebel group’s statement could not be independently verified.
Despite the ongoing crackdown, the targeted killings have continued.
Assailants again shot and killed four migrant workers - three Hindus from the eastern Bihar state and a Muslim from the northern Uttar Pradesh state - in three separate attacks on Saturday and Sunday, increasing the death toll in targeted killings to 32 this year. The slain included 21 local Muslims, four local Hindus and a local Sikh, along with five non-local Hindus and one non-local Muslim, according to police records.
Siddiq Wahid, a historian and former vice chancellor of Islamic University of Science and Technology in Kashmir, said the recent killings gained attention only in the context of sectarian concerns, even as people of all religions were killed, and noted that the subsequent debate has focused on statistics rather than the loss of lives.
“The first distorts and the second overlooks tragedy. Both represent a deep loss for Kashmir,” Wahid said.
In Kashmir, Hindus lived mostly peacefully alongside Muslims for centuries in villages and towns as landowners, farmers and government officials across the Himalayan region. A war in 1947 between India and Pakistan left Kashmir divided between the two countries as they gained independence from Britain. Within a decade, however, divisions emerged as many Muslims began to mistrust Indian rule and demanded the territory be united either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country.
When Kashmir turned into a battleground in the late 1980s, attacks and threats by militants led to the departure of most Kashmiri Hindus, who identified with India’s rule over the region, many believing that the rebellion was also aimed at wiping them out. It reduced the Pandits to a tiny minority.
Most of the region’s Muslims, long resentful of Indian rule, deny that Hindus were systematically targeted, and say India moved them out in order to cast Kashmir’s freedom struggle as Islamic extremism.
These tensions were renewed after Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power in 2014, and as the Indian government pursued a plan to house returning migrant Kashmiri Hindus in new townships.
READ: Kashmir leader’s family charged under India anti-terror law
Muslim leaders described such plans as a conspiracy to create communal division by separating the region’s population along religious lines, particularly after India stripped the region’s semi-autonomy in 2019 and removed inherited protections on land and jobs amid a monthslong lockdown and a communication blockade.
Authorities have since passed many new laws, which critics and Kashmiris fear could change the region’s demographics.
These fears became more pronounced in early September when authorities launched an online portal for migrant Hindus to register complaints of distress sales and encroachments onto their properties, an overwhelming majority of which have changed hands in the last three decades. According to official figures, 700 complaints were received in the first three weeks.
Thousands of Muslim families who bought properties from Hindus were left angered. Authorities even asked some Muslim families to vacate the properties.
“The online portal seems to be a major trigger for the killings,” said Tickoo, the activist.
Among the region’s minorities, Sikhs have lived relatively at ease with their Muslim neighbors and have emerged as the largest minority after the Hindu migration. But they too have faced targeted killings.
After the killing of 46-year-old Supinder Kour, a Sikh school principal, hundreds of angry community members carried her body in Srinagar and raised religious slogans while demanding justice. Some Muslim residents joined them.
“We don’t know who the killers are. Even if I knew, do you think I can talk freely?” said Sikh leader Jagmohan Singh Raina. “We are caught between two guns: the guns from the state and the non-state.”
Raina said no Sikh fled after Kour’s killing but maintained that his community was shaken. He said while the state was “provoking and punishing” the region’s majority Muslims through new laws, the minorities were being “manipulated for politics.”
READ: Resistance leader’s death deepens Kashmir strife
Tickoo and Raina said the killings were “ominous signs″ for Kashmir. They asserted in similar comments that India’s changes two years ago “wounded all of us living on the ground.”
“And the wound,” Raina said, “has become a cancer now.”
Kashmir leader’s family charged under India anti-terror law
Police in Indian-controlled Kashmir charged family members of late resistance leader Syed Ali Geelani under a harsh anti-terror law for raising anti-India slogans and wrapping his body in the Pakistani flag, officials said Sunday.
Geelani, who died Wednesday at age 91, was the emblem of Kashmir’s defiance against New Delhi and had been under house arrest for years.
Read: Resistance leader’s death deepens Kashmir strife
His son, Naseem, said Indian authorities buried Geelani’s body in a local cemetery without any family members present after police snatched his body from the home. Police denied that and called it “baseless rumors” by “some vested interests.”
A video widely shared on social media purportedly showed Geelani’s relatives, mostly women, frantically trying to prevent armed police from forcing their way into the room where his body, wrapped in a Pakistani flag, was being kept. It showed women wailing and screaming as police took the body and locked his family and relatives inside the room.
Police said unspecified family members and some others were charged Saturday under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. They have not yet been taken into custody.
Read: India unveils new initiative to revive crafts sector in Jammu and Kashmir
The anti-terror law was amended in 2019 to allow the government to designate an individual as a terrorist. Police can detain a person for six months without producing any evidence, and the accused can subsequently be imprisoned for up to seven years. Rights activists have called the law draconian.
Kashmir has long been a flashpoint between India and Pakistan, which administer parts of the Himalayan region while claiming it entirely.
Geelani spearheaded Kashmir’s movement for the right to self-determination and was a staunch proponent of merging Kashmir with Pakistan. For many in Kashmir and beyond, he was an enduring icon of defiance against India.
Rebels have been fighting against Indian rule since 1989. The region is one of the most heavily militarized in the world. Tens of thousands of civilians, rebels and government forces have been killed in the raging conflict.
Read: Health workers vaccinate Kashmir nomads
Meanwhile Sunday, authorities eased some restrictions that had been imposed since Geelani’s death, allowing some private vehicles on roads and vendors to operate in some parts of Srinagar.
Mobile phones were restored late Friday but mobile internet and restrictions on the movement of people continued in many parts of the Kashmir Valley.
India unveils new initiative to revive crafts sector in Jammu and Kashmir
The government of India’s newly created Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has unveiled a new scheme to revive the ailing crafts sector in the region. Known as “Karkhandar,” the scheme seeks to upscale the learning techniques of trainees and help the artisans to improve their standard of living.
According to Saudi Gazette, the scheme, which was recently approved by the J&K Administrative Council headed by Lt. Gov. Manoj Sinha, would be implemented in the Union Territory of J&K through respective directorates of Handicrafts and Handloom. After J&K’s transition into a Union Territory, the government has taken many initiatives to empower the craftsmen associated with the traditional arts and crafts in J&K.
The sectors that were neglected by the erstwhile regimes have been worked upon to get the better results and things have started moving. Many initiatives have been taken to improve the wage earnings of the craftsmen and create linkages with producer organizations to inculcate entrepreneurship skill and aptitude to the trainees.
During the past few years traditional industries of Kashmir like: walnut wood carving, silver filigree, carpet, Kani shawl weaving, Khatamband and Papier Machie crafts are facing human resource crunch, but since Aug. 5, 2019 — when the federal government announced its decision to bifurcate J&K into two union territories and abrogated its special status — the lacunas in these industries are being looked into and efforts are being put to ensure that traditional crafts of Kashmir are preserved.
Read: India to roll out DNA-based COVID shots for teens in October
Background
Handicrafts of Jammu and Kashmir are famous for superior craftsmenship, attractive designs, functional utility and quality making. These are popular at national as well as in the international market. After agriculture, handicrafts is a preferred sector in J&K.
In economic terms it helps in generation of aggregate employment and raising per capita income of state and hence contributes to State Gross Domestic Product (SGDP) and National Income. Jammu & Kashmir handicraft industry facilitates technical know-how between state skilled manpower and international market players through foreign exchange.
In J&K there are about 250,000 artisans who are directly dependent upon handicrafts for their livelihood. Besides, there is great potential in this sector for generating more employment opportunities if its markets are expanded and demand is increased.
There are 16 unique crafts in Kashmir with which about 60 percent of households are associated directly or indirectly. As per a research, there are about 400,000-500,000 artisans and 179 major craft clusters associated with the handicraft sector of J&K generating the revenue of more than a thousand crore rupees.
As per an economic analysis of the handicraft industry in Jammu and Kashmir, this number is 300,000. The twin sectors handlooms and handicrafts are the major and the oldest in India with about 4.3 million weavers and 6.9 million artisans. Kashmiri handicrafts involve about 350,000 craftsmen and artisans. According to a study the handicrafts is the second largest Industry of J&K after tourism.
Revival process commenced in 2020
In March 2020, the government directed officials to put in place a robust mechanism for ensuring the revival and propagation of traditional arts and crafts, especially Pashmina weaving. The direction was passed by then Advisor to Lt. Gov. of J&K, K. K. Sharma, while chairing the meetings of the Board of Directors of Jammu and Kashmir Handloom Development Corporation (JKHDC) and Jammu and Kashmir Handicrafts Corporation Limited (JKHC).
"Necessary measures need to be put in place so that the traditional arts and crafts of the region regain its popularity at the national and international level," Sharma had said. He had also called for undertaking requisite steps for incentivizing weavers and artisans to increase their income besides ensuring the revival of traditional arts and crafts.
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The decision was taken to provide minimum support price for the artisans and craftsmen involved in the making of traditional arts and crafts to increase their profitability and attract youth in these heritage professions.
To attract the youth towards these traditional arts, the corporations were asked to explore the possibilities of tie-ups with Jammu & Kashmir Entrepreneurship Development Institute (JKEDI) so that start-ups can be undertaken by young and aspiring entrepreneurs.
The steps were taken to help young entrepreneurs to setup financially viable and revenue-generating units. The branding, quality certificates, marketing of Jammu and Kashmir based products was also undertaken to ensure that products are sold globally.
Opinions of experts from the National Institute of Design and National Institute of Fashion Technology were sought to infuse new life into the ailing industry.
Encouraging craftsmen
On Aug. 17, 2021, Lt. Gov.’s adviser, Baseer Ahmed Khan, conferred state awards to the artisans in handicrafts section. The awards were given in different categories that included Sozni, Paper Machie, Chain Stitch, Crewel and Carpet. Khan asserted that the government led by Lt. Gov. Sinha was committed to promote the crafts, especially the Handicrafts sector of Jammu Kashmir.
The Adviser said that conferring awards on the artisans was an encouragement and the recognition of their efforts to keep alive the skills and trade of Kashmir.
While congratulating the awardees, Khan said that the ceremony is to recognize the artisans who represent their respective crafts as no such example of art can be found anywhere in the world and added that various initiatives have been taken to promote and publicize the Kashmir handicrafts worldwide.
Source to empower local women
On the occasion of International Day for Women in 2020, when Prime Minister, Narendra Modi had announced that he would give away his social media accounts to women whose life and work inspires people to help them ignite motivation in millions, a woman artisan from Kashmir, Arifa, while sharing her journey on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s twitter handle wrote that she always "dreamt of reviving the traditional crafts of Kashmir because this is a means to empower local women."
Arifa stated that she started working on reviving Namda craft after seeing the condition of the women artisans in Kashmir. Arifa termed Prime Minister Modi's #SheInspiresUs campaign an initiative that will motivate her to work harder for the betterment of craft as well as the artisans all over the Valley. Her first business activity was participating in an exhibition of handmade items in New Delhi.
Read: Indian economy grows by 20.1%, raising hopes of recovery
Craft fair at Kashmir Haat
In July this year, J&K Lt. Gen. Sinha inaugurated a15-day long craft fair at Kashmir Haat. It served as a boon for artisans and businesses and a breath of fresh air for locals and tourists. Sinha while inaugurating the fair stated that government’s aim is to empower the handicraft, handloom artisans and improve living standards of present and future generations of Kashmiri artisans.
“With endeavors like revamping the Kashmir Haat, we are strengthening our commitment to providing market support to local artisans and weavers," LG Sinha said. He revealed the plans of the government to provide new markets, create sustainable livelihood for the local artisans, besides preserving rich cultural heritage of J&K.
During the past two years J&K administration has taken various steps to support the artisans in J&K. They have been offered financial aid and support to live a dignified life. The craft fair was an extension of the initiatives that the government has taken to give a major boost to PM Modi's "vocal for local" mantra.
Health workers vaccinate Kashmir nomads
Young health worker Masrat Farid has trekked long distances through remote Himalayan meadows in Indian-controlled Kashmir to vaccinate nomadic herders in a campaign launched in June. Her challenge isn’t the treacherous terrain, she says, but persuading people to get inoculated against the coronavirus.
Read: Twin blasts rock Indian Air Force base in first-ever drone attack
“Everywhere we go it seems rumors reach earlier than we do, and it makes our job difficult,” Farid said during a recent vaccination campaign in a high altitude meadow. She said most people are hesitant to get vaccinated because of the rumors.
And the rumors are plentiful.
Fueled by misinformation and mistrust, many residents, particularly in remote areas, believe that the vaccines cause impotence, serious side effects and could even kill. Some simply say they don’t need the shots because they’re immune to the coronavirus.
Still, Kashmir has done better than the rest of India. Scores of health workers like Farid have fully vaccinated over 9% of the eligible people among the region’s 14 million population, compared to less than 5% for India’s nearly 1.4 billion people. Almost 53% in Kashmir have had a first shot.
Read:India’s covid curve could raise the world’s
Mukhti Khan, an elderly woman, belongs to a family of nomads who have traveled for centuries between summer mountain pastures and winter grazing grounds in the lowland plains, herding their goats, sheep and horses.
On a recent day, Mukhti expressed her gratitude as a medical team visited the village near the remote pasture where she and her extended family have camped with their cattle. They can travel on foot to the village but must walk for hours to the nearest town for any medical emergency.
“It would have been quite an effort to go to the town for vaccinations,” she said as she received her first shot.
Apart from the hesitancy, the health workers have faced hostility as well.
“There are places where our colleagues have been attacked,” said Farid, who has vaccinated over 800 people so far.
Read:Experts warn of third wave of pandemic in India if health protocols ignored
Some of the attacks were fueled by fears that videos taken by officials of the vaccination campaign could be used by authorities to encourage support for the Indian government, which many Kashmiris deeply dislike. Most want independence or a merger with neighboring Pakistan, which controls another part of Kashmir. Both countries claim the entire disputed territory.
‘Great disservice to your office’: India stings UNGA Prez for his Kashmir remark
India on Friday described as “unwarranted” and “regrettable” the remarks by UN General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir that Pakistan should raise the Kashmir issue more forcefully and that all parties should refrain from steps that affect the status of Jammu and Kashmir.
Bozkir, a former Turkish diplomat who assumed office last September, made the comments at a Press interaction with Pakistan foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in Islamabad on Thursday. Bozkir, the first Turkish national to preside over the General Assembly, was on an official visit to Pakistan during which he also met Prime Minister Imran Khan reports the Hindustan Times.
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“We express our strong opposition to the unwarranted references made with respect to the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir by the President of the United Nations General Assembly (PGA) Volkan Bozkir during his recent visit to Pakistan,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.
Bozkir’s remarks that “Pakistan is ‘duty bound’ to raise the Kashmir issue at the UN more strongly are unacceptable”, and there is no basis for comparing the situation in Jammu and Kashmir to other global situations, Bagchi said.
READ: Rohingyas rights to return, citizenship must be respected: UNGA President
“When an incumbent President of the UN General Assembly makes misleading and prejudiced remarks, he does great disservice to the office he occupies. The PGA’s behaviour is truly regrettable and surely diminishes his standing on the global platform,” he added.
At the press interaction in Islamabad, Bozkir said Qureshi had compared the Palestine and Kashmir issues. He also noted that Palestine has more “political wind” behind it, whereas the Kashmir issue doesn’t have the “same enlarged political wind behind it”.
Noting that it is Pakistan’s duty to bring the Kashmir issue to the UN “more strongly”, he said a meeting could be held on the matter if a group of countries submit an application.
Bozkir added, “As an impartial president of the General Assembly, I must also reiterate that the UN position on Jammu and Kashmir is governed by the UN Charter and applicable Security Council resolutions.
“India and Pakistan’s Simla Agreement of 1972...states that the final status of Jammu and Kashmir is to be settled by peaceful means in accordance with the UN Charter and this is, I think, very important that we must all remember.”
Bozkir further said, “I think both parties, all parties, must refrain from taking steps that could affect the status of Jammu and Kashmir. This is I think the very important part of how we look at the case.”
READ: UNGA President pushes for Covid-19 vaccines for all
In August 2019, India revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and split the state into two union territories. Pakistan opposed the move, which Indian officials said was aimed at increasing development, curbing terrorism and bringing the region into the mainstream.
India has rejected Pakistan’s criticism of these developments as interference in its internal matters.
Covid-19 turns Kashmir’s lavish weddings to an austere affair
Dhaka, May 23 (UNB)-The ongoing Covid-19 clampdown has severely affected all spheres of life in Kashmir, and weddings are no exception. What is usually celebrated with a lavish function is now being conducted as an austere ceremony.According to Deccan Herald, the peak wedding season in Kashmir usually starts in late April. However, this year's fasting month of Ramazan started from April 13 and ended on May 13. Hundreds of families in Srinagar had planned weddings after Eid, but the Covid lockdown has reduced marriage functions to a simple and close family affair.
Read: India battles fatal fungal threat as virus deaths near 300KAs per guidelines issued by the J&K administration, only 25 guests are allowed to attend any marriage function in Srinagar. On an average, 400-500 guests are usually invited to a middle-class Kashmiri wedding that lasts for three days. A variety of dishes called ‘wazwan’, mostly non-vegetarian, are cooked for the guests. However, due to the prevailing situation, the big and ostentatious weddings have been replaced by simple gatherings of close relatives and some neighbors.“We have a large family but to choose only 25 guests is a huge issue. Whom to invite and whom to leave is a tough ask,” Hilal Ahmad, whose son is getting married this Sunday, told DH.He said they even had to leave close relatives out of the guest list, which was an embarrassing situation. “Not inviting your nephews and nieces to a marriage function, not only in Kashmir but anywhere, is unheard of. But the situation has forced people to do so as everybody is concerned about safety,” Ahmad added.Last year, several families postponed weddings hoping for respite in the Covid-19 situation this year. Marriage dates are finalized in Kashmir usually four to six months prior.
Read: Covid-19: Why ‘world’s pharmacy’ India is short on shots“As the situation had improved during winter, we finalized the marriage date of my daughter for May-end. We had postponed the marriage last year too, but now we have no other option but to go for an austere function,” said Muneera, whose daughter is getting married next week.She said their plan to cook over 600 kg of meat and chicken for the wedding feast was reduced to 40 kg as the wedding was reduced to a few guests.Many families that had reserved hotels and planned wedding receptions at marriage halls have also cancelled the bookings.The cancellation of wedding functions has dealt a serious blow to the livelihood of people associated with the trade. From tent owners to ‘wazas’ (cooks) and mutton sellers to dry fruit and bakery shops, the clampdown couldn't have come at a worse time.
Read: India COVID-19 tally rises to 26,530,132, daily deaths fall below 4,000
“This is the third season where mass cancellation of bookings happened. Earlier, in August 2019, we faced the same situation after J&K’s special status was revoked; and last year, the Covid restrictions gave another blow to our business. We were expecting good business this season, but it seems our miseries have no end,” Shahid, a tent owner, said.He said more than a dozen employees are without work. “Initially, I was paying them some money from my savings. But now I am myself out of money,” Shahid added.
Pakistan, India peace move silences deadly Kashmir frontier
Concrete bunkers and the heavy artillery cannons dug deep into Himalayan Kashmir’s rugged terrain have fallen silent.
At least for now.
The Line of Control, a highly militarized de facto border that divides the disputed region between the two nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan, and a site of hundreds of deaths, is unusually quiet after the two South Asian neighbors last month agreed to reaffirm their 2003 cease-fire accord.
The somewhat surprising decision prompted a thaw in the otherwise turbulent relations between the countries but also raised questions about the longevity of the fragile peace, in part due to earlier failures. The crackdown by Indian forces and attacks by rebels have continued inside Indian-held Kashmir.
Also read: Pakistan PM to India PM: We too want peaceful relations
The cease-fire, experts say, could stabilize the lingering conflict that has claimed tens of thousands of lives. Kashmiris say the rare move should lead to resolution of the dispute.
It was unclear what prompted the two militaries to adhere to the accord they had largely ignored for years. But experts point to a climbdown by both from their earlier stance following a decision by India to strip Kashmir of its semi-autonomy and take direct control over the region in 2019, and its monthslong bitter border standoff with China.
Paul Staniland, associate professor of political science at the University of Chicago, said the ongoing costs of clashes along the Line of Control, the economic effects of the pandemic, and other foreign policy challenges facing both countries might have combined to create incentives to pursue a cease-fire.
Since 2003, the cease-fire has largely held despite regular skirmishes. Both India and Pakistan claim the region in its entirety and have fought two wars over it, and in the Indian-controlled portion of Kashmir, militants have fought against Indian rule since 1989.
Each country has accused the other of heightening tensions by significantly ratcheting up border attacks in the last four years, leading to the deaths of soldiers and villagers.
The cease-fire announcement came shortly after China and India agreed to a military disengagement from a portion of their disputed border after a monthslong deadly military standoff. It had led to fears of a two-front war between India and China, with the latter assisted by its closest ally, Pakistan.
“Some sort of pressure, possibly from Washington and Beijing for different reasons, is pushing India and Pakistan for wider peace moves in the region,” said Siddiq Wahid, historian and former vice chancellor of the Islamic University of Science and Technology.
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Beijing wants Pakistan to focus on securing its investments as part of the Belt and Road Initiative, a massive, cross-continental infrastructure development project aimed at expanding China’s commercial connections globally. Islamabad is a key partner and some Chinese-built highways snake through Pakistani-controlled Kashmir. The U.S., on the other hand, is courting India to focus its energies on countering China.
“If Pakistan is indeed looking to move toward a new regional role, embracing geopolitics, reducing tensions with India is a must, and if India is going to pivot to deal with a rising China, it has reasons to want to calm relations with Pakistan,” said Staniland, a South Asia expert. “The real question is whether these reasons remain powerful enough over time.”
The thaw in relations became apparent when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, an avowed Hindu nationalist, ceased playing up rhetoric against Pakistan and referencing Kashmir in campaigning for elections in four key states.
In Pakistan, too, political leadership and the powerful military have shifted from their earlier position of not engaging with India until it reversed its decision to annul Kashmir’s semi-autonomy.
Last week, Pakistan’s army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa said it was time for the two countries to “bury the past” and resolve the dispute over Kashmir peacefully. His remarks followed Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s repeated calls for good relations with India with a caveat that the Kashmir dispute remains at the center of any future talks. Since the announcement of the cease-fire, Khan, too, has abandoned his past rhetoric against Modi.
Modi appeared to reciprocate, sending last week a letter to Khan seeking cordial relations. Khan replied Tuesday but reiterated that lasting peace was mainly contingent on resolving the future of Kashmir.
The rapprochement has sparked skepticism among Kashmiris who fear the dispute could be pushed to the backburner given the fast administrative and political changes in the region by India that they have likened to settler colonialism.
“We are not against talks and want an end to violence. But there has to be an end to repression too,” said Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, an influential Kashmiri separatist leader who has been under house arrest since August 2019. “The whole idea behind the negotiations has to be a resolution of the Kashmir issue as per the wishes of its people.”
In the past, Pakistan and India made multiple attempts to broker a deal over Kashmir. They also initiated confidence-building measures like exclusive barter trade between two parts of Kashmir, sporting games and bus services for divided families.
“The cease-fire can lead to relative peace but one should not expect lasting peace,” said Vinod Bhatia, who was India’s director-general for military operations from 2012 to 2014.
Meanwhile, villagers living along the frontier are paying the price.
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The lives of Nader Hussain and Munshi Muhammad Arshad are divided by a barbed concertina wire. Hussain lives in Indian-controlled Kashmir and Arshad in the part controlled by Pakistan.
In late November, Hussain saw an artillery shell fired by Pakistani soldiers fly towards him in his mountainous village. The 50-year-old couldn’t outrun the projectile and lost both legs in the blast. Two other men were killed on the spot.
“The two countries do politics on our bodies, but this must end,” he said.
On the other side, the 45-year-old Arshad, who lost his father to an artillery shell fired by Indian soldiers, hoped for peace.
“But a durable peace,” he said, “will only come when the Kashmir issue is resolved.”