It has been more than three years since the two nuclear rivals, India and Pakistan declared a cease-fire along the line that divides Kashmir. Life has changed for the better for the people of Amroohe village, which is 187 kilometers from Srinagar in the North Kashmir's frontier district of Kupwara...It is predominantly a Gujjar village, situated 200 meters from the border in a valley and flanked by Pakistan on two sides. The two wars between India and Pakistan, the eruption of militancy, the Kargil conflict and shelling even in times of peace have brought untold miseries for the residents of this village.

Due to the constant shelling by the Pakistani troops from the across the LOC, the residents are often forced to take shelter in underground bunkers and have had to leave the village for long periods to save their lives. Despite several deaths people have slowly and steadily started rebuilding their lives. The Border Security Force (BSF) has also helped villagers build concrete and painted houses in place of mud houses to withstand the onslaught of bullets and mortars.Constant shelling has also adversely affected the education of youth in the village, forcing them to abandon their studies. Inayat-u-llah had to discontinue his studies when he was in primary school as his school was closed for three consecutive years due to heavy shelling.

The soil of Amroohe is fertile making agriculture and cattle rearing the primary occupation of the people. According to Mangta Cheechi, 87, maize is the main crop cultivated in the area. He says that before Partition in 1947 they used to sell maize at Mirpur now under Pakistani occupation. Shelling has not only affected the fertility of the soil, it has also killed cattle in great numbers. But with the ceasefire now in place, villagers have started rearing them again.Besides agriculture, approximately 40 percent of the village population earns its livelihood by working for the Indian Army and the Paramilitary forces mainly as porters. While some are involved in construction of roads, others work as labourers in the State Forest Department.

However, not everyone views the ceasefire as heralding a new era of peace and stability in the valley and especially in the villages along the LOC. Zeeshan Mohammed Khatana, one of the village elders while happy with the ceasefire, is apprehensive too, due to bitter experiences in the past saying that "the government on the either side should not be trusted".

Like Amroohe there are other villages on LOC that have the same experience. These include Reyala, Gundsanna, Gundgujjran and Tribuni. In Reyala, the villagers still maintain their underground bunkers despite the three-year long cease-fire. The feeling was that it was not possible to trust "the other side." People have died and several houses reduced to rubble in the shelling. The villages of Gundgujjran and Gundsanna have been the worst hit by Pakistani shelling with fourteen dead. The anger is palpable amongst the residents . The killing of innocent villagers who had nothing to do with the policy of the governments on both sides and damage to the school buildings, have infuriated the villagers. However, much to their relief, the classrooms of the schools have been repaired by the troops of 104 Brigade of the Indian Army. Tribuni which is dominated by the Sikhs, is a village with 47 residential houses out of which twenty four were completely damaged due to shelling.

Despite the hardships, the residents of villages on the LOC have over the past eighteen years helped the Indian Army in various ways. A number of militants have been killed thanks to the reliable information provided by the residents of these villages and senior army officers have acknowledged this. It will not be an exaggeration to say that the villagers have played an important role in helping the Indian Army guard India's border with Pakistan.

Unfortunately, these border villages do not have other employment opportunities than the ones mentioned above. A solution could be recruitment of youth from these villages in the Indian Army and BSF with a relaxation of the selection criteria. Alternatively, willing village residents can be provided special training for guarding the border that will enable them to supplement their earnings from farming. The Jammu and Kashmir government has advertised the raising of 15 battalions of police. It would be appropriate if there were a special recruitment drive in these villages along the LOC. Greater effort needs to be made to improve the standard of living of the residents in the border villages.