Confidence replaces terror
JAMMU, Dec 1 — The scene stands changed on both sides of the 187-km-long international border from Akhnoor to Kathua. Since under the Lahore agreement reached between the Pak Rangers and the BSF recently, confidence has replaced terror. People on this side of the border are no longer scared after not a single shot was fired by Pak Rangers since November 23.

BSF Raising Day celebrated
HUMAHAMA (BUDGAM), Dec 1 — The Jammu and Kashmir Governor, Mr Girish Chander Saxena, said here today that the control of militancy was in the hands of foreign militants operating in this trouble-torn state at present, which posed new challenges before the security forces fighting these elements.

Srinagar airport reopened
SRINAGAR, Dec 1 — The Srinagar airport was reopened for routine flights after a gap of six months today. The resurfaced runway was inaugurated by the Defence Minister, Mr George Fernandes on Wednesday last.

Confidence replaces terror
From M.L. Kak
Tribune News Service

JAMMU, Dec 1 — The scene stands changed on both sides of the 187-km-long international border from Akhnoor to Kathua. Since under the Lahore agreement reached between the Pak Rangers and the BSF recently, confidence has replaced terror. People on this side of the border are no longer scared after not a single shot was fired by Pak Rangers since November 23.

Farmers on both sides of the international border are busy in sowing wheat and mustard. Even women, who over the years dared not to come out of their houses, are seen busy in cultivation work. Right from the early morning till late afternoon farmers work in the fields and in Samba and R.S. Pora sectors farmers have started sowing right up to the zero line.

Girdhari Lal and his son, Jia Lal, do not believe their eyes when their neighbours are seen carrying bullocks up to the zero line in village Maljoda and its adjoining hamlets. Girdhari Lal had lost his wife Kamla when Pakistani troops opened fire on the village in mid-October. In intermittent but heavy firing from across the border more than 20 civilians have been killed on this side of the international border during the past one and a half years.

This had created panic and in the border village of Hiranagar several hundred families migrated to the tehsil headquarters after they felt unsafe under the rain of Pakistani bullets.

Kailasho remembers that since July, 1996, "we have not been able to carry out farming operations. Whenever we would move in the fields, we were greeted with Pakistani firing."

The intensity of the firing on the Indian villages in R.S. Pora, Samba and Akhnoor sectors increased right from July, 1995, when the Indian authorities started fencing the international border. Since then the border fencing project has been suspended. And during all these years more than 20,000 people were affected on this side of the international border as they could neither carry out sowing nor harvesting. During the past four years, according to official figures, farming operations had to be suspended on about 20,000 acres of land in the border villages. And those farmers who used to feed the people in the state with rice and wheat had to bank on doles in the shape of free ration and Rs 500 for maintenance of cattle from the government.

When the uproar of the people over the grim situation on both sides of the international border sharpened, the Pak Rangers and the BSF came under pressure to find ways and means of ending the turmoil. Earlier a series of meetings between the sector commanders of the Pak Rangers and the BSF had been held but each meeting saw the Rangers violate the unwritten agreement reached at the meetings.

After great persuasion the Pakistani side agreed to hold a fresh meeting in Lahore where the Director-General Rangers represented the Pakistan side and the IG, BSF, from Punjab, Rajasthan and Jammu represented India. After three days of deliberations in which charges and counter-charges were levelled it was decided that both sides would stop firing on civilians and on the villages.

And so far the Pak Rangers have honoured the agreement with the result one finds farmers moving about freely in their fields with plough on their shoulders. After nearly three years this correspondent could see farmers enjoying their meagre lunch in the open in the border villages of Samba and R.S. Pora.

Right from Hiranagar to Samba and to R.S. Pora the BSF jawans guard the border. They too feel relaxed as after over three years the roar of gunfire is absent. Farmers are happy that they have got an opportunity to carry out sowing which could later help them repay the loans they had procured from money lenders and other shopkeepers. Several hundred families which own sprawling agricultural fields in Samba, Hiranagar, Bishna, R.S. Pora border villages, had become refugees. Shopkeepers had stopped giving anything on loan to them.

BSF Raising Day celebrated
Tribune News Service

HUMAHAMA (BUDGAM), Dec 1 — The Jammu and Kashmir Governor, Mr Girish Chander Saxena, said here today that the control of militancy was in the hands of foreign militants operating in this trouble-torn state at present, which posed new challenges before the security forces fighting these elements.

'The character of militancy has changed as indigenous element has come out', Mr Saxena told mediapersons. He was here to address BSF officers and jawans on the occasion of 34th Raising Day of the force at the Subsidiary Training Centre (STC) this afternoon.

Earlier, addressing the officers and the jawans, the Governor urged them to fight the foreign militants and take care of the safety of innocent people. He admitted that a number of people were caught in the exchange of fire between the militants and the security forces.

"I am reasonably satisfied with the overall situation in Kashmir. We are not through yet, but we are much closer to the goal of peace and stability", the Governor said in reply to a question. He claimed that it was calm in north Kashmir.

The Governor said the situation was "much better" and 'normalcy' was open for all to see for themselves. He added that the initiation of a political process and the installation of an elected government in the state showed that the situation had improved to a great extent. "It shows that the people in the valley have shunned militancy and they want peace, better education and other civic services", Mr Saxena said. "Since we have reached this stage, it is necessary to control the residual militancy" he added.

The Governor also visited the war memorial at the STC and inspected the recoveries made by the BSF troops attached to the frontier headquarters, looking after central districts of Srinagar and Budgam and the south Kashmir districts of Anantnag and Pulwama. The Governor also lauded the role of the troops who laid their lives during anti-militancy operations in the valley during the past nine years.

Welcoming the Governor, the IG BSF, Mr K. Vijay Kumar, said that the troops made a significant contribution in restoration of peace and normalcy in the trouble-torn valley. In this connection, he also referred to the sacrifices made by some valiant officers and jawans during their fight against militants. He made special mention of Commandant Vinod Sharma, SI Bir Singh and Constable John Kennedy, who laid their lives while fighting militants at Takanwari, near Srinagar, last month.

The Governor donated Rs 50,000 to the BSF for the welfare of the troops.

Senior civil, police and CRPF officers were also present. A 'Bara Khana' was also served to the jawans on the occasion. Patriotic film songs on national unity and integrity also rent the air as the jawans presented a colourful cultural programme.

Srinagar airport reopened
Tribune News Service

SRINAGAR, Dec 1 — The Srinagar airport was reopened for routine flights after a gap of six months today. The resurfaced runway was inaugurated by the Defence Minister, Mr George Fernandes on Wednesday last.

The airport had been closed for resurfacing on June 7 and the work was completed ahead of the schedule by the Beacon Project of the Border Roads Organisation. The airport is at a distance of 12 km from the capital at an altitude of over 5000 feet.

The routine flights were being operated from the Awantipora Air Force Base during this period.

Those associated with tourism had criticised the government for shifting of the airport to such a distance which caused "much inconvenience" to the in coming and out going tourists, whose numbers had increased to a great extent this summer after a gap of eight years of militancy.

The government held that it was necessary to upgrade and resurface the airport for landing of aeroplanes with more capacity for better flow of tourists.