‘We still sleep in bunkers’: Border villages haunted by Pakistan shelling, bomb squads work round-the-clock in J&K

NEW DELHI: Dozens of army and police bomb disposal squads are combing through scorched fields and broken homes along the Line of Control (LoC) and International Border in Jammu and Kashmir, defusing deadly reminders of Pakistan’s 4-day shelling spree.From Rajouri and Poonch to Samba and Jammu, unexploded artillery shells and mortar bombs litter the ground, a ghostly aftermath of one of the fiercest cross-border flare-ups in recent years.The offensive from across the border began on May 7, just hours after forces launched Operation Sindoor, striking nine terror targets in retaliation to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26, mostly tourists. What followed was chaos: 28 civilians dead, more than 50 injured, and over 2 lakh residents forced to flee their homes, reported PTI.“Three persons, including a senior government officer, were killed in Rajouri, dozens of houses were damaged and livestock perished,” Chief secretary Atal Dulloo said during his visit to the shelling-hit villages, as quoted by PTI.Many displaced people have returned over the past three days, but thousands remain in relief camps, waiting for clearance from bomb squads. The army is conducting controlled explosions to destroy the live shells still buried in fields and alleys.“We express sympathies with the families who lost their members and also assure that the injured will be provided best healthcare,” Dulloo said, adding that the government is working to expedite compensation and rehabilitation.Despite an understanding between India and Pakistan on Saturday to halt hostilities, tension hangs thick in the air.“Even after the announcement, we are taking no chances. Pakistan is habitual of doing mischief,” PTI quoted Mohd Firdous from Manjakote sector as saying, who still spends his nights in a bunker. “There are too few bunkers. We need more if we are to survive the next shelling.”In Nowshera, Chuni Lal recalls the horror. “We haven’t seen shelling like this since the 2021 ceasefire pact. We just want peace—and a financial package to rebuild our homes.”The chief secretary acknowledged this was the first time towns like Rajouri and Poonch were hit. “We now need to rethink how to safeguard urban areas too,” he said, hinting at a possible expansion of underground bunker schemes.As the bomb squads press on, every explosion they trigger is a step closer to normalcy. But for the people of the border, true peace is still just out of reach.