Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com Kashmir Pen

THURSDAY 12-December 2019 Vol:04 Issue No: 49 Price:5/- Pages:16

OPINION 03

GROPING IN THE DARKNOSTALGIA 04 NARRATIVE 07

SOCIETY OF COMMONERS ABSENT BRICKS

Dense Fog Disrupts

Life in KASHMIR

For the last ten days, Kashmir has mostly seen dry weather with a slow wind speed, resulting in foggy conditions, increas-

ing traffic snarls across the major roads and highway areas and affecting 100 flights causing discomfort to air passengers.

NEWS THIS WEEK 02 Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

Owner,Printer,Publisher & Editor : Mushtaq Ahmad Bala, Legal Advisor : Nazir Ahmad Baba (Advocate), Published from : Debonair Group, #9, Regal Building, Regal Chowk, Srinagar 190001 Kashmir, Printed at : Khidmat Press, The Bund, Srinagar, Phones & Email : Editorial : 2479202,2472529 Fax : 0194-2451587 editorkashmirpen@gmail.

com, Marketing Head / Photo Journalist : Haamid Mushtaq Bala (9906841415), haamidbala@gmail.com, Circulation, Layout Editor & Designer : Rouf Ahmed, 9419059895, roufahmed008@gmail, Title Code : JKENG01219, REGISTERED with Ministry of Communication & I.T. under # JK NP-245/SKGPO-2018-2020

SMS Services Resume For

Postpaid Sub-scribers In

Kashmir; In-ternet, Prepaid Services Still

Down Internet services were snapped in

Kashmir on August 4, day before the Centre abrogated Article 370

SMS service messages, including ‘one time passwords’ (OTPs), resumed on Tuesday for 40 lakh postpaid mobile subscribers in Kashmir following several requests from the public, particularly the business communi-ty, officials here said. Though the Jammu and Kashmir administration allowed service providers to resume ma-chine-based messages, subscribers will not be allowed to send any mes-sages from their mobiles, the officials said. The resumption of service mes-sages will help the general public,

especially business-persons, receive service messages from banks, they said. Prepaid mobile and Internet services continue to remain blocked in the Valley. The administration had last week said they will resume the broadband Internet services in phases once the situation turns “more normal”. Phones fell silent on August 5, when the Centre revoked Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and re-organised the state into two union territories -- Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. Postpaid mobile phones in Kashmir buzzed back to life after a gap of 72 days on October 14, but SMS facilities were stopped within a few hours after the Army claimed militants were using SMS services to mobilse people. Over 25 lakh prepaid mo-bile phones and Internet services, including WhatsApp, remain de-activated for now, the officials said. On August 17, partial fixed-line te-lephony resumed in the Valley. On September 4, nearly 50,000 landlines were declared operational. In Jammu, communica-tion was restored within days of the blockade and mobile internet re-started around mid-August. Howev-er, after its misuse, internet facility on cell phones was snapped on Au-gust 18.

Sanctions call in US over Citi-

zenship BillAmerica’s religious-freedom

monitor has recommended sanctions on Amit Shah over

the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, which it described as “a dangerous turn in the wrong direction” that was against India’s Constitution. The Unit-ed States Commission on Interna-tional Religious Freedom (USCIRF) on Monday urged Washington to consider sanctions against the Union home minister and “other principal leadership” over the religion-specific bill, prompting New Delhi to protest that the statement was inaccurate and unwarranted. “The CAB enshrines a path-way to citizenship for immigrants that specifically excludes Muslims, setting a legal criterion for citizenship based on religion. The CAB is a dangerous turn in the wrong direction; it runs counter to India’s rich history of sec-ular pluralism and the Indian Con-stitution, which guarantees equality before the law regardless of faith,” the commission said. “In conjunction with the ongoing National Register of Citizens process in Assam and (the)

nationwide NRC that the home min-ister seeks to propose, the USCIRF fears that the Indian government is creating a religious test for Indian cit-izenship that would strip citizenship from millions of Muslims.” The commission, which describes itself as “an independent, bipartisan federal government en-tity established by the US Congress to monitor, analyse and report on threats to religious freedom abroad”, issued the statement soon after the bill cleared the Lok Sabha on Monday night. Created by The International Religious Freedom Act, the commis-sion monitors the universal right to freedom of religion or belief abroad — using international standards — and makes policy recommendations to the President, secretary of state, and Congress. It submits an annual report to the state department. “If the CAB passes in both Houses of Parliament, the United States government should consider sanctions against the home minis-ter and other principal leadership,” it said.The statement opens up an-other front, apart from the Kashmir clampdown, on which the Narendra Modi government will have to fight a perception battle in Washington. It was because of the religious freedom commission that then chief minister Modi was denied a US visa in 2005 following the Gujarat carnage.

THURSDAY 05-DECEMBER-2019

On Human Rights Day per-son protests in

Press ColonyOn the eve of World Human

Rights day, a person, identi-fied as Sami-u-llah s/o Mo-

hammad Ramzan r/o Chattabal, who claims to be a social worker and associated with an organiza-tion, namely ‘Ban Liquor Shops in Kashmir’ staged a solo protest in Press Colony over the status of hu-man rights, who was later arrested by the police. According to reports, a person appeared in Srinagar Press Colony in the afternoon and raised slogans against the human rights violations. He was holding a placard in his hand on which it was written that 1.8 billion Muslims of India are united for the cause of Babri Masjid and no one can snatch the mosque from Muslims. While speaking to the me-dia persons, the said person said that he is against forcible takeover of religious places and if it was a temple in place of the mosque, his reaction would have been the same. On this occasion police

personnel from Kothi Bagh Police Station appeared on the scene a frisked the man away.

Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) de-bated in Par-

liamentOn Monday, a Home Minis-

ter Amit Shah rebutted the charge that the legislation

was violative of the Constitution and said the bill was anti-infiltrator and not against Muslim. According to reports , re-sponding to the opposition’s charge that the bill excluded Muslims while granting citizenship on the ground of religious persecution to six mi-norities from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, Shah asserted that provisions of the legislation were in accord with “reasonable classifica-tion” under the Constitution. He said that minority pop-ulations from these nations were left without a homeland and with no benefits associated with citizen-ship. “Those saying that the bill is in violation of Article 14 have prob-ably not read carefully the work done by their own parties. All those who came to India after 1947 were

accorded citizenship, including Manmohan Singh and L K Advani,” he said. “In 1971, Dandakaran-ya project accorded citizenship to those who migrated from Bangla-desh. Even Indians displaced from Uganda were given citizenship and these legislations were done on the basis of reasonable classification of Article 14, which is being done now for people who migrated due to persecution on basis of religion,” he said.

Ceasefire vio-lation by Paki-stan in Shah-pur Sector in

PoonchIndia on Tuesday claimed to have

destroyed many Pakistani bun-kers, after it accused Pakistan of

violating ceasefire in Shahpur area of Poonch District. According to Defence of-ficials, Pakistani army resorted to unprovoked shelling from across the Line of Control (LoC) in the wee hours of Tuesday morning, in Shahpur sector of Poonch district, in which a porter working with Army was seriously injured. The

injured porter has been identified as Showkat Ahmed a local from the area. He has been shifted to hospi-tal in a serious condition, where he is presently undergoing the treat-ment. Officials said that Paki-stan violated ceasefire agreement in Shahpur area of Poonch on Tuesday morning, which was retaliated with a befitting response from Indian side, in which some Pakistani posi-tions were destroyed. According to the reports received from the area heavy artil-lery fire was exchanged by the sides against each other, forcing the local population to take shelter in safer places. The cross LoC firing in-tensified and culminated at heavy shelling, forcing residents to run for safety. There was lot of pan-ic and fear among the population, who said that there life has become hell since last four months after ar-ticle 370 was revoked which ignit-ing permanent escalation between Indian and Pakistani armies. They alleged that there has not been enough done by the administration to make safety ar-rangements from cross LoC shell-ing, which has so far consumed sev-eral civilian lives and injured many.

OPINION 03 Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Groping In The Dark

Radical State-crafted policy casts the citizen as alien

SUKANTA CHAUDHURI

Mukul Kesavan (The Telegraph, November 24) offers clear and timely warning on the iniquities of the proposed National Register of Citizens

in conjunction with the citizenship (amend-ment) bill. I feel, however, that the proposal carries yet other problems and dangers. It leaves not only our Muslim fellow-citizens but all of us deeply vulnerable. The root issue is well noted by Ke-savan: the NRC would place each of India’s 1.35 billion people under suspicion of false-ly claiming citizenship, and task them with exonerating themselves. In other words, they would be assumed guilty until they proved themselves innocent. There are al-ready certain laws said to place this onus on the accused. To impose it by default on every person in the land staggers belief. Is there any instance in history of any nation, let alone one so large and, all told, so stable and politically organized as India, consign-ing its entire population to such an inquisi-tion? It is the more astonishing that the proposal should be revived after its dismal trial run in Assam. The Assam NRC ex-posed the people of that state to untold ha-rassment, stress and misery. The poor lost their meagre savings and sacrificed their daily earnings to pursue their claim, some-times only to be cheated by middlemen. Er-rors in implementation occurred on a hero-ic scale: overlooking soldiers and freedom fighters, registering the child but not the parent, one sibling but not another; in one reported case, only one of a pair of twins. People were placed in detention centres not only on grounds later overruled but owing to clerical blunders and mistaken identity. The exercise cost the nation Rs 1,600 crores. I leave out of account the situation of the 19 lakh individuals excluded from the reg-ister. An untold number who finally made it lost their worldly security and peace of mind along the way: their lives will never be the same. The NRC was touted as stopping foreign infiltrators from depriving genuine citizens of their income and benefits. Yet the NRC itself has done just that for very many Assamese. At the end of it all, the quarters who most clamoured for the Assam NRC have condemned and rejected it. It seems set to become a dead letter. Yet we propose to re-peat the folly across India. The Assam NRC had its origin in a political accord and a di-rective of the Supreme Court. An all-India NRC and CAB would be gratuitous politi-cal exercises with no legal or constitutional compulsion; rather, it might contravene ma-jor legal and constitutional principles. One point needs to be strongly

urged, though simple common sense sug-gests it. Anywhere in India, poor people of little education will find it hard or impos-sible to produce the papers likely to be re-quired by the NRC or CAB. An Aadhaar card, ration card or PAN card is no proof of citizenship. An electoral card or a passport is proof, but may not count unless issued before a cut-off date: in fact, one of the argu-ments for the NRC and CAB is that they will eliminate people who have fraudulently ob-tained such documents. Going by the pro-cedure in Assam, people without documen-tary proof of money, property or education from decades ago will be hard put to qualify. Obviously, this excludes virtually the whole of India’s poor, and tribal communities who may have dwelt in their territory for undoc-umented millennia. It will also — and this does need stressing — exclude a host of oth-ers. The cut-off date is important too. It was 1971 in Assam. There is talk of re-verting in the all-India exercise to 1951, the year of the first NRC. Most of India’s current population was not alive at that date. They will have to rely (like very many even with a 1971 cut-off) on records relating to their parents or remoter ancestors, with more pa-perwork to prove the relationship. Unless one holds ancestral property or is an ardent family archivist (which assumes education and means to start with), few people can conjure up such proof. This is where even educated, afflu-ent, non-Muslim citizens might be shaken out of their current complacence. They can-not rest assured that they will escape un-scathed, especially in Bengal or the North-east, which are likely to bear the brunt of the exercise. We should not take an alarmist stand. It is possible that, by unguessable means, the government will work out a smooth, non-invasive and equitable pro-cess. What we can reasonably demand is that before the passage of either bill, the gov-ernment informs the nation of the detailed procedure it proposes to adopt, and allows ample public discussion of this momentous issue. A mere assurance of good intentions and State benevolence will not suffice, in the light of Assam’s ordeal. Belligerent threats to drive out the intruders, often in grossly intemperate language, will only add to the alarm. In particular, we need to know more about the procedure adopted for the CAB, where there is no precedent to go by. The exclusion of Muslims from its provisions is a deeply disturbing constitutional issue likely to be fought out in court. If I do not allude to it further, it is not because I would under-play its importance, but because others (in-cluding Hindus) need to grasp that they too have cause for worry, or at least questions to

ask. Only then might they accept that this is a common cause engaging all Indians. In what follows, I am merely laying out some questions in the hope of answers. I am seek-ing not confrontation but reassurance. Under the proposals, one will not automatically qualify as an Indian citizen if one belongs to a religion other than Is-lam. One will have to apply for citizenship in terms of the CAB. For this, one must plead religious persecution (or fear of per-secution, their own or their forebears’) in a neighbouring country. Deposing before a joint parliamentary committee, the Intelli-gence Bureau identified a ‘small number’ of 31,313 such people. What then of all those who, for the reasons above, do not make it to the NRC, but who have not suffered such persecution nor had any connection with those countries? Residents of ‘safe’ states, far from international borders and ethnical-ly distinct from the people across them, will face the greatest quandary. It cannot be the intention of the State to make them swear false affidavits. How can they protect their identity as Indian citizens?Those who might make the plea with a sem-blance of truth face an opposite problem. The Intelligence Bureau opined before the JPC that if such persons had not declared their situation (as fleeing persecution) ear-lier, “it would be difficult for them to make such a claim now”. We may add that more basically, if they now apply for citizenship, they acknowledge that they are currently not citizens, and never have been. Yet they have lived all their lives as Indian citizens. They hold electoral cards and passports. They invest money and pay taxes as resi-dent Indians. They may hold government or semi-government jobs only open to Indi-an nationals. They have never had to think about these matters. Will the ground now sink under their feet? Will they be prose-cuted? Will they and their children have to rebuild their lives from scratch if and when they obtain citizenship?Such fears may be unfounded, but they are natural. When the citizenry feels in the dark about radical State-crafted plans for their future, they are justifiably anxious. There is nothing they want more than reassurance in clear and concrete terms, taking them into full confidence. If our rulers have thought their strategy through, they should share it with the nation. If they have not, it behoves them to do so. We might otherwise walk into a disaster that leaves demonetization looking like a picnic.

The author is Professor Emeritus, Jadavpur University

NOSTALGIA 04THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

Z.G.MUHAMMAD

Ours was not an aristocratic so-ciety, not at all of high nobility. It was a society of commoners. The society of real people that have braved its chilly vagaries

steered it out of whirlpools, battled des-peradoes and added colours and shades to the rainbow of its culture. Tumbrel pullers, chariot drivers, weavers, needle. workers, hook-workers, darners, walnut wood carv-ers, vegetable tillers, milkmen, milkmaids, watermen, shoemakers, drummers, herds-men and artisans have provided warp and woof of different colours to our intricately woven society. Years before I was born, the land-ed gentry was on a decline and by the time, I grew up it had almost vanished from the scene and had left behind only some sad and sweet memories that elders on occa-sions shared with the children. I doubt if per se there was Muslim aristocracy in our society after we had lost our independence and were ruled through governors from distant capitals in Delhi, Kabul and Lahore. However, we have had a small class of ben-eficiaries and rich people popularly called as Khojas. In our childhood, this class of people after having lost their big landed es-tates and fortune fondly continued to cling to this title. I remember having seen palatial houses of some of these Khojas crumbling brick by brick and graveyard silence having descended on their once lustrous and rap-turous Dewan-khanas that for years had resonated with lilting tunes of santoors and melodious Hafiz Nagmas. Suffering from ‘blueblood-hubris’ some of them continued to live in their past. Often nostalgic about their lost glories they failed to recognize the new realties. I often heard stories about their erudition and mastery of Persian lan-guage but I never felt like knowing more about this class of people. Notwithstand-ing as a class, the khojas having died in our childhood, the word however survived. In the changed times, now it was the class of neo-rich political workers, fat-tening on political corruption that was on the ascendance. But, largely these failed to draw respect from the society and earn the title ‘khoja’, however many of them earned different nicknames for their new found treasures. Some of these nicknames for as-suming symbolic significance found their way in our lexicon. I do not know why and how during those days of innocence and

purity my peers and I hated these political hoodlums building their castles through bribery and fraud. Perhaps we had picked up hate against them from all pervading hateful political atmosphere; I am yet to remember if I have ever heard a word of praise in our locality for arty of these neo-rich. In this atmosphere of ‘political way-wardness’, some commoners a shoemaker, a sweeper, a lineman, a ‘bihishti and a post-man had assumed larger than life person-alities for me. Many of these legendary or-dinaries with all their characteristics to this day survive in the hinterland of my mind. Recounting their tales would be as good as rewriting Chaucer’s Canterbury tales. Maqbool Saaka, a water-carrier from Soura was one of them. Much be-fore children would leave their quilts in the morning he watered the main road. He dexterously sprinkled water on the two sides of the road from the hide sack sling-ing from his left shoulder. I loved watching him watering the road and many a time out of curiosity asked him to pour some water in cup of my palms. These hide sacks were made from the goat and buffalo skins and making them out of cow hide continued to be an offence even after end of Maharajas’ rule that had banned Cow slaughtering. This watering of roads brought some fresh-ness in the atmosphere. Like many others in his tribe, he worked on a paltry salary for Srinagar Municipality. After having emp-tied couple of water sacks on the roads, he often sat on a darners shop in our mohalla for having a smoke from his hubble-bubble. He was master narrator. In his typical dic-tion, he recounted many stories some that he had heard from his father and some that he had witnessed. In his own right he was a chronicler of sorts and biographer of his neighbour; the then jailed towering Kash-mir leader Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah. He often narrated anecdotes about poor and deprived childhood of the leader per-haps some blended with fiction. The stories about childhood of Abdullah often aroused curiosity in me- even elders sitting inside the shop were interested to know more about him. He was also called Maga Bihishti; 1 and my friends out of innocence believed that he would certainly go to the paradise

Z.G.Muhammad is a noted writer and col-umnist

Society of Commoners

I doubt if per se there was Mus-lim aristocracy in our society

after we had lost our indepen-dence and were ruled through

governors from distant capitals in Delhi, Kabul and Lahore. How-

ever, we have had a small class of beneficiaries and rich people

popularly called as Khojas. In our childhood, this class of people

after having lost their big land-ed estates and fortune fondly

continued to cling to this title. I remember having seen palatial houses of some of these Khojas

crumbling brick by brick and graveyard silence having de-

scended on their once lustrous and rapturous Dewan-khanas that for years had resonated with lilting tunes of santoors and melodious Hafiz Nagmas.

Suffering from ‘blueblood-hubris’ some of them continued to live

in their past. Often nostalgic about their lost glories they

failed to recognize the new real-ties. I often heard stories about

their erudition and mastery of Persian language but I never felt

like knowing more about this class of people. Notwithstand-ing as a class, the khojas having

died in our childhood, the word however survived.

KASHMIR 05THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

Europe or West Kashmir is the Best

DR.ABDUL AHAD

Surpassing others in splendour of untold gifts from God, Kashmir is more than an enchantress who puts spells on people from all over the world; bringing them right on the edge closer to the heaven;

making them feel that they are stepping into a fairyland, a garden of delight and the world’s only natural paradise on earth. The high snow-clad peaks; the lush green vales; the affluent timber forests with brawny Deodar, the large, varied ani-mal kingdom with the rarest sub-species of Han-gul : the attractive feathered kingdom with love-ly, chirpy Katij and Poshmool whose sound of chirruping is a forewarning of the onset of spring; the rich fertile soil with energizing walnut and al-mond trees; the invigorating cherry and apple orchards; the famed Dal and Wular with house-boats, mobile markets and floating gardens, and with Nadru and Singhara growing in their wa-ters; the wide ranging herbs, lavender and other medicinal plants; the aromatic roses; the valuable sapphires and marble deposits; the unexplored mineral wealth; the subjugated water bodies; the callously exploited hydroelectric potential; and the bracing climate- the nature’s bounties to be found nowhere else in the world, cover it abun-dantly with their comeliness and highlighting so markedly and strongly its special feminine fea-tures. These natural objects are God made brid-al attire that , embellishes her With extra details of charm and magic. These have , for centuries, been constantly preserving and conserving its flora and fauna, its mesmerizing beauty, its mur-muring rivulets, its water bodies, its Saffron and paddy fields and its orchards With bumper apple, almond and walnut crops; giving its inhabitants a creative zest to weave their way through vigorous pursuit of productive activities especially Shawl making, paper Mache, carpet weaving and oth-er handicrafts ; setting Kashmir, thus, not only to shape its destiny, its cultural tapestry and the narrative of its triumphs and tragedies but also to earn lofty reputation and praise from all corners of the world. To Nund Rishi Kashmir offered every-thing that heaven makes available in abundance. He commended it in these words: “Every minute that I spend here (in the lap of Kash-mir) will be deducted from my stay in heaven” Thomas Moor, a celebrated 18th centu-ry Irish poet and Musician in his legendary Lalla Rukh has praised her in these words: Who has not heard of the Vale of Kashmir? With its roses the brightest that earth gave Here the music of prayer from a minaret swells The nature’s embellishments and benev-olences make Kashmir more interesting and un-usually exciting for visitors, poets, artists, bota-nists, geologists, archaeologist, mountaineers and others. Cradling them in her arms with love and care and providing them with nearly everything that they require to make their quests meaning-ful, insightful and their life enjoyable and cher-ishing, Kashmir gives everyone what he/she ex-actly wants to take pleasure in and delve into. She doesn’t displease anyone. A layman, an ordinary artisan, a petty shop-keeper or a rickshaw puller,

who are so devoid of lyricist’s or painter’s vivid imagination, or an historian’s appreciation, or writers observation, equally sit absolutely mes-merized on the verdant banks of Jhelum or Ni-geen and in the midst of Nishat, Shalimar, Chesh-mashahi and Mughal gardens.’ Brij Narayan Kaul Chakbust, a noted Urdu poet eulogized Kashmir in these words: Zara zara hai meray Kashmir ka mehman nawaz Rah may pathar kay tookdon nay diya pani mu-jhay (How hospitable, human and indefinably vibrant is each and every aspect of Kashmir that even its stones and way sick pebbles showered on me af-fection and made me most welcome in the Valley and above all offered me water to drink). When a resident of the Valley is far away in the hot regions of burning desert sun, the happy memories of Kashmir definitely cause him to close his eyes for a moment and think af-fectionately and nostalgically about its absorbing feminine prettiness. In fact one realizes the im-portance of Kashmir only when he gets an oppor-tunity to stroll into some foreign town or borough or counts- and come face to face with its terrain which is utterly bereft of nature’s bequest that adorns the valley so abundantly. The barren, des-olate, wide stretches of land looking like oceans of grassy field’s without any visible end, moun-tains or hillocks attract him the least. The climate and topography of the subcontinent is even more exasperating to him. The arid conditions of t he countryside, the scorching hot townships, humid cities, noisy streets of India and Pakistan don’t suit the kashmiri temperament. For a Kashmiri Delhi, Lahore , Lucknow or Rawalpindi is as dry an infuriating as the deserts lands of Rajasthan. He is quire unfamiliar with their weather, envi-ronment and ambiance which engulf him (24X7) with frightening perspiration compelling him to say hurried goodbye and walk home in frustra-tion and dissatisfaction. All this gives Kashmir a competitive edge over other beautiful places in the word and makes it far greater than Iran ; the Iran-i-Akbar. Even the beauty of Switzerland, which is most frequently described as somewhat analogous to that of Kashmir, is no match for her ; it is far behind in magnificence and exquisiteness and stands nowhere in relationship or similitude to the life-giving environs of the valley . For these bounties it will, therefore , not be demonstrably unfair or chauvinistic to say that Kashmir is far ahead of world’s celebrated places in picturesque beauty and landscape and that ‘Europe or West Kashmir is the best’ is a statement of fact. It is equally true that, unlike them, Kashmir is increasingly lacking in infrastructural facilities, modern services, civic amenities, dem-ocratic privileges , social justice , economic secu-

rity and rule of law, national sovereignty, political independence and value for human rights- the distinct features that characterize most of them in copious way- due to political reasons attributable to its disputed status that it has inherited from the Partition of 1947, which brought into being India and Pakistan to accommodate the wish list of Nehru and Jinnah, the main spoilers of unique cultural heritage of the Indus Valley Civ-ilization and, subsequently, divided the State of Jammu and Kashmir between these dominions and whirled the valley into a web of an unnatu-ral , unwilling wedlock with India that provoked Pakistan to retaliate and challenge the same with full vehemence. Though exceedingly captivating for the visitors, the natural assets of Kashmir are, thus, discouragingly depressing for the natives. Apart from giving them biting, severe and brutal cold winters, which are too harsh to bring their life to a standstill,’ they entice both India and Pakistan - often embroiling them in fierce fighting - to have a firm foothold on the soil of Kashmir and exploit her resources to their advantage and to the detri-ment of its society. Giving Kashmir too much of strategic importance by placing her in the womb of the gigantic Himalayas with India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, China and Russia surrounding her, these geographical features have, in fact, become a huge liability: a cause of great political instabil-ity and a source of deep anxiety for them: expos-ing there, with disquieting frequency and without any respite, to a huge gamut of afflictions, woes and ravages of Indo-Pak wars. The inexpressible agonies they are facing day in and clay out, there-fore, emanate essentially from the very concept of deeply flawed partition and a fabricated In-strument of Accession: a political scandal history has seldom witnessed —second in the course of a century; first being that of Treaty of Amritsar 1846 when Kashmir was “sold” to Gulab Singh by disparately unrelated people, the British who succeeded in usurping Kashmir’” The Kashmiri aspirations are the by-product of this outrageous act of India which duped innocent indigenous public to the hilt. Incorporating Kashmir into its dominions, violating its own commitments, repeating injustices to perpetuate its hegemonic control, avoiding holding a result oriented and serious dialogue to settle the issues besides dis-couraging public dissent are some glaring trends to accelerate the Kashmiri urge for change.

Dr. Abdul Ahad is a well-known historian of Kash-mir. He presents a perspective on the Kashmir issue and talks about Kashmir’s history and individuali-ty and personality. For feedback the author can be mailed at drahadhist@yahoo.co.in

“Every minute that I spend here (in the lap of Kashmir) will be deducted from my stay in heaven” ( Nund Rishi )

Who has not heard of the Vale of Kashmir? With its roses the brightest that earth gave Here the music of prayer from a minaret swells (Thomas Moor)

KASHMIR PEN EDITORIAL

Citizenship Amendment Bill & Secular Principles

The controversial bill seeks to provide citizenship to religious

minorities in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.The government,

led by the Hindu nationalist Bhara-tiya Janata Party (BJP), says this will give sanctuary to people fleeing

religious persecution.Critics say the bill is part of a BJP agenda to

marginalise Muslims.The passage of the Citizenship

Amendment Bill (CAB) will be a test for the BJP in the upper house of

parliament because it lacks major-ity there. A bill needs to be ratified

by both houses to become a law. The bill has already prompted wide-spread protests in the north-east of the country which borders Ban-gladesh, as people there feel that

they will be “overrun” by immigrants from across the border.

Now, there will be an exception for members of six religious minority communities - Hindu, Sikh, Bud-

dhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian - if they can prove that they are from Pakistan, Afghanistan or Bangla-desh. They will only have to live or

work in India for six years to be eligible for citizenship by natural-

isation, the process by which a non-citizen acquires the citizenship

or nationality of that country.It also says people holding Over-

seas Citizen of India (OCI) cards - an immigration status permitting a foreign citizen of Indian origin to live

and work in India indefinitely - can lose their status if they violate lo-cal laws for major and minor offenc-

es and violationsIf the government goes ahead

with its plan of implementing the nationwide NRC, then those who find themselves excluded from it

will be divided into two categories: (predominantly) Muslims, who will

now be deemed illegal migrants, and all others, who would have been

deemed illegal migrants, but are now immunised by the Citizenship Amendment Bill, if they can show that their country of origin is Af-

ghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan.Taken together, the NRC and CAB

have the “potential of transforming India into a majoritarian polity with

gradations of citizenship rights.

EDIT 06THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

GOWHAR GEELANI

At a time when George Orwell was strug-gling to make sense of the Spanish Civil War in Barcelona in the 1930s, the Hi-malayan region of Kashmir had made a transition from economic awakening to

political awakening. Prior to this, philosopher-poet Mohammed Iqbal had written a Persian poem titled Saqi Nama in the Nishat Gardens in Srinagar. The poem talks about the abject condition of the Kashmi-ri weaver and artisan. The Kashmir Valley was then preparing for a political makeover. And the stage was set to transform the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference — the res-tive region’s first political formation — and modify its nomenclature to Jammu and Kashmir National Con-ference, with the stated aim to accommodate varied shades of opinions. This was to bestow the party a sec-ular outlook. Today many believe that Kashmir was, and rather is, essentially an issue of Muslim aspiration which ought to be asserted and articulated unapolo-getically. Meanwhile, like many conscious Euro-peans, Orwell was alarmed by the rise and early tri-umphs of fascism — Mussolini’s victory in Ethiopia and Hitler’s reoccupation of the Rhineland. The pri-mary reason behind Orwell’s sojourn to Spain was to write newspaper articles, but he ended up joining the militia. He was a “romantic puritan with a longing for equality”. He was fascinated by the concepts of justice, equality and freedom. Julian Symons notes in Homage to Catalo-nia that “to a generation of young people throughout Europe, the crucial event of the 1930s was the Spanish Civil War.” When a section of young Europeans, from Spain and France and elsewhere, were attracted to the “revolution” in Spain, a section of young and asser-tive Kashmiris was showcasing defiance against the autocratic Dogra rule of Maharaja Hari Singh. It is also proven that a section of educated Kashmiris were influenced and inspired by the Russian Revolution at the time. As the Spanish Civil War had attracted Or-well and thousands of non-Spanish volunteers who joined the Republicans (militia) in the 1930s, many young men in Peshawar were driven by a romantic cause in the late 1970s. The cause of liberating Af-ghanistan from Soviet occupation drew idealists from across the Muslim world. The Iranian Revolution had been instrumental in inspiring the Muslim youth at the time. It had made them believe that anything was possible. A similar pattern was seen in Kashmir in 1989 when several hundreds of Kashmiri youth took up arms to challenge New Delhi’s writ in the restive region. What happened in Kashmir in 1989 did not happen in isolation. There was a regional context and also a global framework. The decade in question was the 1990s and the event was the battle for Bos-nia. At the start of the decade the former Yugoslavia was crumbling into chaos and civil war. Germany witnessed the historic fall of the Berlin Wall. Kashmir too had its own context of various vibrant political

movements (the Plebiscite Front from 1953 to 1975), a transitory armed struggle al-Fateh not long after the Partition in 1947, and the Quit Kashmir move-ment launched by Sheikh Abdullah in the early 1940s against the despotic Dogra regime. Around the same time the world powers were engaged in a deadly con-flict — the Second World War. The Kashmir issue can be easily misunder-stood if it is analysed in isolation. Global events have shaped the political discourse in the region and, at times, also mobilised public opinion throughout var-ious political struggles. Not many people are aware that left-wing intellectuals had reasonable influence on Kashmir’s political landscape in the 1930s and 1940s, so much so that Kashmir’s city centre, Lal Chowk, is named after Moscow’s Red Square. Moreover, a fascinating document named Naya Kashmir was pro economy and gender sensi-tive. Naya Kashmir became the new manifesto for Kashmir’s social and economic awakening. Several Communists, especially Baba Pyare Lal Bedi and his wife, Freda Bedi, were instrumental in drafting the Naya Kashmir document. It visualised Kashmir along the lines of a Soviet Central Asian republic. It was formally adopted by the Sheikh Abdullah-led National Conference in 1944. Generally speaking, people in Kashmir are politically conscious and do keep a watch on global affairs. Many of them usually keep themselves abreast with the latest happenings. Events like the Arab Spring or the recent protests in Hong Kong have not gone unnoticed in Kashmir. During the prolonged shutdowns from 2008 to 2019, many conscious Kash-miris have revisited the libraries to read more and un-derstand more about their history and international affairs. They draw lessons from the past. They also try to strike a balance between self-congratulatory chatter and self-loathing. They love discussing Kashmir and world affairs over a cup of tea or kehwa. Some are also critical that people have not reacted in time. Others argue that angry athletes make mistakes and the fact that anger has to be channelised for good. Intellectually stimulating discussions over Kashmir are a regular feature of normal life in Kash-mir in abnormal times when the region is about to set a world record for the longest-ever (four-month-long) Internet outage in the world. Others are critical of the silence, while a few see it as a strategic pause. And do point out to the fact that this silence is mean-ingful. Therefore, the perceptible silence in Kash-mir after what happened on August 5 cannot be mis-construed as surrender by any stretch of the imagina-tion. Signals from the ground demonstrate that the BJP’s strong-arm tactics and majoritarian narrative have compelled Kashmiris to do a rethink, and made them regroup with a renewed resolve to fight back. They believe that they have shown grace under pres-sure. They deserve freedom of expression and also freedom after expression, they say. Kashmir’s silence, as Arundhati Roy has noted, is the loudest!

Kashmiris Have Shown Grace

Under Pressure

NARRATIVE 07THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

Absent Bricks

Mushtaq B.Barq

All of a sudden shrieks, pitched and painful, packed the class room adjacent to a nearby house where females were narrating the tale of woes through dominant squeals.

Windows were pushed open to know the cause. Nothing but cries could reach our ears. A pitched cry battered the chest walls, leaving every eye wet, compelled all to drop their faces, inviting emotions to be crushed, making ev-eryone to come out to listen to her advanced plight. Through those wide open windows, many innocent young boys had fixed their doleful eyes at the house where painful waves were roaming haphazardly, hitting one and all, their faces had put on a pathetic attire, perhaps they were in trance to imagine their own end. It was evident that someone had passed away, but who, was the question on ever tongue. A boy rushed into the class, a local lad crying: “Shabaz has passed away”. Most of the students raised a com-bined shriek. I understood these lads had lost a comrade. The mournful faces of the students in the class made it look dull and devastating. The walls, the charts, the desks and white board all appeared strange and disorganized like the cur-rent state of distress of grief-stricken students. Class was suspended and we all joined Ni-maz-i- Jinaza. Some was pointing at the outer wall of the house, were two bricks had gone miss-ing. Everyone was keenly watching the outer wall of Shabaz’s house which to me appeared mysterious. From the upper row of the wall just two bricks were missing, leaving the wide open gate and freshly clean compound of the house shocked, everything except mourning ladies appeared quiet. Underneath the wall, a water chan-nel recently raised above the ground level too had slowed its pace; the two fallen bricks were being beaten by the current of mournful water like the dead body of Shabaz on the plank be-ing attended by relatives and friends. He looked fresh, his uncovered face was pale, and his beard had a fresh cut to make his day pleasant. He was ready to flight of the alone to the Alone. It was almost twenty minutes walk to graveyard. On the way someone narrated his tale of death. Shabaz had planned to offer his Fajar Salah in his local masjid after spending night at his uncle. After taking sehri, he left to say his prayers at nearby masjid just few meters from his home. The silent Shabaz who was being car-ried to graveyard had decided not to go back but to sleep at his home till 8:30 a.m. but was unaware of the fact that his couch had long been decked out.

He banged the gate, no one answered, and everything except the water channel was beating the drums, may be to witness a fall. Like an obedient and responsible son, he de-cided not to break the sleep of his family and planned to jump over the wall. His hands had failed to grasp the wall, he slipped and hit the concrete wall of the wa-ter channel which had already slowed down its pace to receive Shabaz to be carried to the Mas-ter. Two bricks had fallen, no one was conscious of the fact that dead body of Shabaz was already being washed by the water channel lying beneath the wall of his own house. A pedestrian informed the nearby people. They banged the gate but this time bang was ruthless and violent that brought all the in-habitants out to receive chilled body of Shabaz. Shabaz was fished out of the wa-ter channel like a mystery to be resolved. The mystery of his death. Death comes silently, but leaves everyone shattered, broken and painful. Mother screamed, her cries reached to one and all, mountains received the yell, brought every one out to mourn. Her sister and father had occupied the corners of the gate and were watching the unending funeral of their dear one. Nimaz-i- Jinaza was offered. The lone-ly grave in a corner of that vast graveyard was lying silently. The freshly ploughed earth was heaped on all sides of that friendless grave like his parents scattered dreams which they had woven to see their son leading on all fronts of life. On the way back, those two missing bricks were fished out of the water channel. On the gate the mourning mother was still in shock, she had embraced the fallen bricks and was singing lullabies like she had sung when Shabaz was a kid playing in her cozy lap and now those two missing bricks of the wall were hardly responding, they were as dead as freshly dumped body of Shabaz. Those missing bricks had cracked the wall of her maternal love, had broken the row of his paternal care and fissured the confidence of her sister who had dreamt to see the palms of his brother pigmented with Hina.“Throw these bricks behind and calm down”, a lady suggested. The doleful mother only looked at her, kissed those rough bricks hard and repeatedly placing them closed to her heart. “This wall may be repaired, but who shall repair my broken palace”, she sighed pointing out at the wall separating water chan-nel and the house.

Mushtaq B.Barq is a Columnist, Poet and Fic-tion Writer. He is the author of “Feeble prisoner, “ Wings of Love” and many translation works are credited to the author like “ Verses Of Wahab Khar” and “ Songs Of Sochkral”

“Underneath

the wall, a water chan-nel recently raised above

the ground level too had

slowed its pace; the two fallen bricks

were being beat-en by the current

of mournful water like the dead body

of Shabaz on the plank being attend-ed by relatives and friends. He looked

fresh, his uncov-ered face was pale, and his beard had a

fresh cut to make his day pleasant. He was ready to flight of the alone to the

Alone.

TRAVELOGUE 08THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

BOSTON ; Cool, Historic And

Lively City.AUTAR MOTA

Boston is a historic town on Atlantic fall-ing in New England area .It is about 350 kms from New York and you can either fly or reach it by Train (Amtrak) in forty minutes or four hours respectively. The

fare ( around $65) is almost same and quite often trains are expensive . Travelling in November 2017, I found the train journey more enjoyable with fall colours all around. The north end or Downtown tour is simply reliving Boston’s past. American settlement history informs that Massachusetts Bay colony was established at Boston in 1630 by immigrants from England. Af-ter initial hardships, these New Englanders saw prosperity and these settlements spread to Rhode Island , Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine. Along with farming and fisheries, these new settlers engaged themselves in import and export of Timber, Grains, Sugar Tea, Furniture, Molasses and manufactured goods. Tempted by stories of prosperity and riches more immigrants from Italy, France , Germany, Spain, Sweden and Netherlands started pouring in. Ships full with poor natives from various African countries were continuously brought to the New found Country and these people set-tled themselves all over America . Bulk immigrants also kept arriving from Spain continuously. This immigration or European colonization decimated the native inhabitants. Conflicts and New diseases also took their toll. This immigration also result-ed in a clash of interests between France and Great Britain .Both the empires battled supremacy in the region and also in what came to be known as Can-ada.The treaty of Paris (1763) confirmed England’s dominance in North America westward to the Mis-sissippi river. In 1773, The Freedom movement of America gained inertia when a ship load of Tea was dumped into Atlantic as political protest by a group of leaders that included Paul Revere and Samuel Adams. The Tea was consigned to a Boston trader by British East India company from UK.. The local importer also refused to take delivery of the ship-ment .Something what Gandhi ji did in his Dandi March or the salt Satyagraha . The Tea dumping act is relived through Theatrical performances . The Tea ships are preserved .This event came to be known as BOSTON TEA PARTY in American history of Independence .Possibly this could be the reason as to why coffee( And not Tea) is so popular everywhere in USA. Boston is also known as “ America’s Walk-ing City “ . The Faneuil Hall Market place is known as “ HUB OF THE HUBS “. It is the central point of the city with its old landmarks and most popular points of interest.

Keep walking and Follow the “ FREE-DOM TRAIL “ to visit Most of the old historical sites and structures . you need to see Faneuil Hall, Quincy Market Food Colonnade ,Boston Public Garden , Little Italy Market , Old churches , Ceme-teries of first immigrants , Paul Revere’s old wood-en House Built in 1680 AD ,Boston Tea party ships and Museum, Old State House , Boston Massacre site , State House , Beacon Hill Holocaust Memori-al , Old south Meeting Hall and many more places .Walk a street lined with Trees and houses that looks so much like it did in the 1600s. Browse room after room of precious paintings and pieces of Art at the Cape Ann Museum or Peabody Essex Museum or Addison Gallery.

You find Local brewers , cider houses , distilleries and wineries recreating, resurrecting and reinventing old recipes into new , making their mark in the world of craft style Handcrafted spirits .Buy and gift it to the connoisseur. Tasting rooms are a popular place to sample before you buy. You find any kind of Beer you ever wanted to taste. A visit to Witch History Museum and sea Pirate Museum is a new experience. Better walk one day and then take a Hop on Hop Off All Day Tour Bus next Day to cover Maximum places worth visiting in old Boston town. Every building has a history. Every street has a story to tell; So don’t be in hurry, Look , read and listen some fasci-nating stories being related by so many tour guides

TRAVELOGUE 09THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

. Stop to read prominent inscriptions and details on stones and walls of old buildings and streets. Don’t be surprised to see some people in old Victorian Era Dresses outside Faneuil Hall. They are just trying to enact the old glory and life of early Immigrants . You can also join the live performances in Faneuil Hall with regard to Tea Taxation Act . The street magicians are active outside the Quincy Hall. The ladder and rope ac-robats ask you not to leave the crowd till they fin-ish their performance . The Russian Doll seller , The Balloon seller , The free Book reading space , Pubs , open Bars , BBQs and the street musicians outside Faneuil Hall attract your attention. The north end or Downtown Boston has been picturized in many Hollywood mov-ies. Films like Manchester by sea, Perfect Storm, shutter Island(2008) , The Heat 2012) , American Hustle (2013 ) and many more prominently fea-ture Boston’s downtown or North End. Rows of Italian Restaurants. Rows of old houses and shops in North end make you believe that you are in some old European city . Unlike New York , People are open and communicate.Like New York , Boston too has a China Town with a substantial Chinese population. Unlike New York,The Cab Drivers in Boston are friendly,open,smiling and eager too talk to you and know about your place and coun-try. “ Welcome sir, “Have a Great day”. “That is my pleasure Sir” is often heard. Most of them are well educated or retired persons or students en-rolled in premier institutions with valid driving licence. Cab driving could be interim occupation or something the students do during their long breaks. Cars are leased after proper verification through police or private agencies. Don’t be sur-prised to find your cab driver doing his Masters or a retired Engineer who plans to set up some business. Music and Television is available in cabs. The driver keeps sipping coffee or munches a chocolate as he drives and busies you in conver-sation. Sincerity is apparent. Boston is a well known Education Cen-tre ( MIT and Harvard ). It is also known as a Centre of Medical Research . The coast of North of Boston region happens to be among the best places in the world for whale watching. You can board whale watch-ing sight seeing Tours at so many locations along the region’s Coastline. Sea cruising is a favourite Tourist activity. Boston lies in Massachusetts state fall-ing in New England area of USA ; Very cold and full of snow in Winters . Life is little relaxed and not so fast and MOVING as I saw in New York. People walk , talk and smile . They help you to reach your destination should you seek interven-tion. The Homeless on the street may suddenly raise his voice and say “ NAMASTE “ . We saw a Farmers market ( Our Sabzi Mandi ). Every vegetable and fruit ( Farm Fresh ) in plenty and at cheap rates . The cries: “Apples Apples , Come this way , Two

for a dollar, Come.”“Grapes Seedless one lb for a dollar”“Brown Plum three for a Dollar”“Fresh Pears 3 for one Dollar”“Potatoes , Potatoes 1 lb for one Dollar. Fresh”“Hey you Gentleman, Hey Friend,Hi Madam ,Here Here Cabbage, Spinach, Carrot and Kale.Discount.”“Hey You come , Come this way , Fresh , Dis-count” We visit the spacious South Station ( Long Distance Trains ).Neat and clean with mouth watering food Malls.We also visit the massive and spacious Prudential Centre ( Shop-ping Mall ) and pull out a short story ( From the automatic short story Dispenser ) to read it as we move inside this fashionable Mall. We dine at DOSA FACTORY ( Indian Restaurant ). The waiters could be students doing part time work. I found some students from India doing MBA in some good institutions and simultaneously do-ing part time work in Malls, shops ,Restaurants and other establishments to supplement their in-come. Most of these part time workers are paid as per minimum wage applicable to the state of their domicile. Minimum wage varies from state to state. It could be anywhere between 8 to 12 Dollars per hour of work. In Boston , the minimum wage for the he non tipped category of workers is $11 per hour of work .New York state proposes to hike the minimum wage to $15 per hour of work. It is quite easy to find work on minimum wage scale . People can work during a time that is most convenient to them as so many shops and stores are open 24×7. Public transport is not visible in Boston. People use Cars. Petrol is something around 2.40 Dollars a Gallon ( something around Rs 45 a li-tre as we understand it ). Car prices start from $ 12000. A new Ford Fiesta may cost you some-thing around $13500 ( exclusive of incentives ).Down payment in cash may reduce the price by another $1000. And meeting Muneebur Rahman in Boston was a pleasure . Muneeb is son of well known kashmiri writer and poet Amin kamil .He edits a quality( pure literary ) journal NEAB in kashmiri from Boston . Neab was published originally by Amin Kamil from kashmir. Muneeb works as Director Translations at the Prestigious Boston Language Institute. Before I close this write up I Need to tell that the oldest News paper in USA known as “THE BOSTON GLOBE” is published from this town. It is a Quality Newspaper in terms of its contents and impartial reporting. I am informed that the paper has won 26 Pulitzer prizes and the owners have a long history of contributing to various charities and philanthropic causes .So Long So Much...

Autar Mota is a blogger , Translator and writes in En-glish , Urdu , Kashmiri and Hindi. His write-ups have appeared in many national magazines and journals.

“ Unlike New York,The Cab Drivers in Boston

are friendly,open,smil-ing and eager too talk

to you and know about your place and country. “ Wel-come sir, “Have a Great day”.

“That is my pleasure Sir” is often heard. Most of them are

well educated or retired per-sons or students enrolled in

premier institutions with val-id driving licence. Cab driving

could be interim occupation or something the students do during their long breaks.

Cars are leased after proper verification through police or private agencies. Don’t

be surprised to find your cab driver doing his Masters or a

retired Engineer who plans to set up some business. Music

and Television is available in cabs. The driver keeps sipping coffee or munches a chocolate

as he drives and busies you in conversation. Sincerity is

apparent.

COVER STORY 10THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

Dense Fog Disrupts Life in KASHMIR

For the last ten days, Kashmir has mostly seen dry weather with a slow wind speed, resulting in foggy conditions, increasing traffic snarls across the major roads and

highway areas and affecting 100 flights causing discomfort to air passengers.

Severe cold wave continued in Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh with the minimum temperature continuing to hover several degrees below the season’s average. The winter chill in Kashmir Valley is on

a continuous surge as temperature continues to dip disrupting life further in the region leading the government to announce winter vacations for all government and private schools here from Tues-day. The government’s Education Department announced the winter break for students from both primary and higher classes in view of the pre-vailing weather conditions from December 10 till February 22. The weather, according to Meteorological Department, is expected to worsen further from Wednesday and the weather department has pre-dicted rain and snowfall in the region for at least two consecutive days. Due to the inclement weather conditions, thousands of passengers have been left stranded in Srinagar as all in and outbound flights were can-celed for fourth consecutive day due to disruption caused by an impairing fog here from the last few days. “The flights are being canceled due to less visibility and heavy fog for the last four days,” an official at the Srinagar airport said. Nearly 100 flights have been affected due to the weather condition at Srinagar airport caus-ing discomfort to air passengers. According to of-ficials, close to 30 flights operate on a daily basis at the airport which is the only flying route for the civilians of the Valley. Even as the road traffic has resumed on all major regional highways, commuters continue to face inconvenience owing to unpredictability in the weather forecast. The 300-km long arterial highway between Srinagar to Jammu often gets closed in view of heavy precipitation that results in road blockade, shooting stones and erosion. The severe fog conditions also disrupted ground visibility for vehicles plying inside the Val-ley, increasing traffic snarls across the major roads and highway areas. As the region freezes under sub-zero tem-perature, the fog has also affected shopkeepers and other business establishments, which remained open in the early hours till midday in the wake of shutdown against the prolonged crisis since Au-gust 5, when Article 370 was abrogated. The shops open later than usual due to the lack of visibility. The region witnessed an early onset of winter after snowfall covered Valley early Novem-ber restricting people’s movement for days. During the first snowfall, many accused the new UT ad-ministration of responding late to the crisis.EXPANSION IN HORTICULTURE LANDMany claim the intensity of fog has been ‘unprec-edented’; something being witnessed for the first time in the Valley, invoking concerns among envi-ronmentalists. Environmental expert Shakil Romshoo

says even as the fog in a valley like Kashmir is nor-mal, but the amount of particulate matter present in the air currently is worrisome. “On December 3, the amount of particu-late matter (PM) present in the air was 232 PM per square meters but the valley experienced an exem-plary rise to 500 PM per square meter on Monday, which is 5-6 times higher than normal standards,” Romshoo says. The rising PMs in the air, Romshoo adds, is an indication of increased air pollution in the region. Romshoo, who heads the department of earth sciences at University of Kashmir, says the increase in fog days in the region with higher lev-els of PM are a result of expansion in horticulture produce. According to him, from the last four de-cades, the horticulture sector has increased around 27 times in the region and orchardists this time prune trees after securing their harvest. “The or-chardists resort to slash burning of the pruned ma-terial to collect charcoal which emanates dust and smoke in the air,” Romshoo claims.SUSPENSION OF AIR TRAFFICNo flights could operate from Srinagar airport for the third consecutive day due to poor visibility on Monday, December 9. To add to the problem, the Meteorological Department has warned that foggy conditions will persist for the next 48 hours. “There will be a slight improvement in the foggy weather on Tuesday, and then the weather will improve from Wednesday,” Sonam Lotus, Di-rector, Met Department, Kashmir told IANS. He also explained that for the last ten days, Kashmir has mostly seen dry weather with a slow wind speed, resulting in foggy conditions. Further, the Met Department has predi-

cated snowfall in Kashmir from December 12 and 13 due to a fresh western disturbance. “Snowfall will be mild in the plains and heavy on the higher reaches,” Lotus said. According to a government advisory, an active western disturbance is most likely to affect the Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir, Lada-kh and adjoining areas from December 10 to 14, 2019. “Under the influence of this weather sys-tem, widespread moderate rain/snow is expected at a few places of Kashmir on December 10, there-after increase in intensity and distribution will happen,” said Lotus. The weather advisory says the system is likely to cause heavy rain/snow, mainly in Pir-panjal range of Jammu division (from Baderwah to Banihal), upper reaches of Kashmir (Gulmarg, Sonmarg, Baramulla and Kupwara), and Drass subdivision of Ladakh Union Territory. “This may lead to disruption of surface and air transport including Jammu-Srinagar na-tional highway. Srinagar-Leh National highway (Zojilla pass), Leh-Manali Highway, Mughal road and Sadhana pass and there would be a further dip in temperature,” Lotus added. There has been a significant drop in tem-peratures due to the prevailing cold wave condi-tions in Kashmir. The night temperature in Sri-nagar was recorded at minus 2.6 degrees Celsius, while the ski resort of Gulmarg experienced minus 4.2 degrees Celsius.

Pic:Haamid Bala/KP

FEEDBACK 11THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

NILANJAN MUKHOPADHYAY

It is a cruel and poignant irony that the four men, accused of raping and mur-dering a Hyderabad veterinary doctor, were killed by the police allegedly in an encounter on the sixth of December.

Twenty-seven years ago, in 1992, police personnel turned a blind eye initial-ly, and later applauded, when a majoritarian mob, thousands-strong, tore down a decrepit medieval mosque -- which had acquired far greater symbolic value for communities at loggerhead. In 2019, roles were reversed. This time innumerable jubilatory processions were taken out across countless cities lauding the handful of police personnel who possibly decided to take law in their own hand and bowed to public pressure for speedy retribu-tion. Both events and many in between have repeatedly questioned India’s swagger of being a Republic. It is paradoxical for a large section of the political class, intelligen-tsia and the hoi polloi, to find hope and jus-tice in wilful violation of law by the police, in a nation where the Prime Minister swears by the Constitution and calls it the only Holy Book of the country. In such a situation, one begins to wonder about honesty in the assertion and whether it makes sense to assume public of-fices after swearing to uphold the Constitu-tion and rule of law. Indeed, the shoot-out during the wee hours of 6 December was preceded by India’s lawmakers, almost in unison, but for a sprinkling of voices of san-ity, giving a call to junk laws made by their predecessors. It was the call by parliamentarians and celebrities, both of who have granted themselves the right to comment on every-thing but their own conduct, for immediate execution (“they should be lynched” was not just Jaya Bachchan’s scream), which gave strength to whoever decided to press the trigger. In 1992, then Vice President and lat-er President of India, KR Narayanan, termed the destruction of the Babri Masjid as India’s greatest political tragedy after the assassina-tion of Mahatma Gandhi. Not the encounter in Hyderabad, but the public elation in its aftermath, is one of the gravest tragedies in India in recent years because it shows how far back in time the country has slipped. The problem is two-fold. First, it had not even been established that the four killed were actual perpetrators or if they were made

mere scapegoats, accused to ward off rising criticism of police. Second, despite the bra-vado of the police commissioner, who re-portedly has a past of ‘dubious encounters’, the police would not have still acted without political clearance. If the state government indeed gave the nod for killing the four accused in cold-blood, it raises a chilling prospect. Another two thoughts arise out of this. First, the Tel-angana government is hardly the first where state power has been used to take the short-cut to punishment. Second, while the clam-our for instantaneous ‘justice’ has avenged the rape and murder of one girl, what about less ‘celebrated’ cases? On the first, dacoits in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh were often elimi-nated in questionable exchanges from 1950s onwards. In fact, in UP, VP Singh was forced to quit in July 1982 as chief minister within two years of assuming office. This was after reports of false encounters of smaller dacoit gangs and petty criminals in Mainpuri, Et-awah, Etah and Farrukhabad districts sur-faced. Naxalites in West Bengal in the 1970s and again in Andhra Pradesh and Ch-hattisgarh in recent decades, petty criminals in Bhagapur, Bihar in late 1970s, the under-world in Mumbai in the 1980s, militants in Punjab in the 1980s and 1990s and in Jammu and Kashmir from the time militancy be-came norm and unproven allegations of ex-tra-judicial killings in Gujarat, are instances of police taking law into their own hands and not completing the due processes of law to deliver justice. Worse, each of these actions were publicly feted. Recall, Siddharth Shankar Ray being labelled a ‘successful’ chief minister and later being appointed Governor of Pun-jab not for the knowledge of the state, but for having presided over a sordid chapter which triggered Mahashweta Devi’s classic, Hazar Chaurasi Ki Maa. Recall the public admin-istration and expansion of mandate for Julio Ribeiro and KPS Gill. Even the way not-so-senior or even junior officers were rewarded, suggests that extra-judicial methods have al-ways been appreciated. On the second thought mentioned previously, what happens to less ‘celebrated’ cases? Has India become a country where ‘justice’ will be provided only if the crime is high on the ‘brutality index’? Does this mean that everyday crime which continues unabat-ed beneath the gaze of public anger will re-main unpunished? Sadly, institutions and individuals

for ensuring that the investigative and legal process becomes more efficient and swift, are looking for an easy way out. The public can be expected to become a mob driven by irra-tional rage. But it is the brief of Parliament and state legislatures to douse the social flame. This can be done only by systemic correc-tions. But instead of engaging in a time-con-suming and laborious process, lawmakers, led by the government, are either asking for blood or baying for the heads of alleged criminals. The question that everyone needs to be asked is that if instances of rape shall come down after this encounter. Another question which should have posed to the Hyderabad police was element: Why were they not more diligent and careful while tak-ing the accused to reconstruct the scene of a crime which had become extremely sensitive and high-profile? For a moment, if one believes the po-lice version that the accused were shot dead when trying to escape, should not the police be criticised and not congratulated for hav-ing allowed them to try slipping away? History shows that encounters are mostly fake. And, by supporting these, peo-ple are taking back the country to the times when nations functioned under Code of Hamurabi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his first I-Day speech in 2014 had argued that families need to become the first correc-tive institutions because the rapists were also “somebody’s son.” The way his own party leaders have been screeching, it is obvious that Mo-di’s words have been lost on them. There’s something seriously wrong with the system of bringing up new generations and this in-cludes our educational system. An encounter now and then is not going to provide lasting solution to what is an endemic problem. Because everyone needs to perform duties better, the three arms of the State must discharge their pri-mary responsibility.

The writer is an author and journalist. His first book was The Demolition: India at the Crossroad and his most recent one is The RSS: Icons of the Indian Right. Views expressed are personal.

An Encounter Now And Then Is Not A Solution To

An Endemic ProblemThe public can be expected to become a mob driven by irrational rage. But it is the

brief of Parliament and state legislatures to douse the social flame.

VIEWPOINT 12THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

RAJDEEP SARDESAI

There are few Indian politicians as inscru-table as Sharad Pawar. The old political saying in Mumbai is “what Pawar thinks, what he says, and what he does are three entirely different things”. The saying

might explain why no one is still quite sure what was Pawar’s exact role in the high drama in Maha-rashtra last month. Was the Nationalist Congress party (NCP) leader really not aware of the negoti-ations that his nephew Ajit Pawar was having with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)? Or was he playing both sides of Maharashtra’s high stakes poker pol-itics to find out who would give him the best deal? The full truth may never be revealed, but what is clear is that, as he reaches 80, Pawar has proven to be the real shatranj ka khiladi (chess player) in Ma-harashtra’s complicated chess game. Ironically, just a few months ago, Pawar was being almost completely written off. His party was imploding — more than a dozen leaders and an NCP Member of Parliament switched sides ahead of the elections — and even his family seemed to be splitting apart. He was named in an enforcement directorate First Information Report (FIR), a move that in hindsight may have been Devendra Fadna-vis’s biggest mistake. It virtually signalled an open war between an ageing regional satrap and the ris-ing star of Maharashtra politics. The truth is that Pawar has never been the kind of statewide mass leader that the national media projects him as. His primary base has been confined to his western Maharashtra citadel, where he exercised control over his agrarian Maratha caste base. But he has never, for example, led the Congress, or indeed, the NCP to a majority win in Maharashtra, often relying on break-ups and post-poll deals to cement his position in the state. Nor has he been able to expand his influence beyond Maharashtra. His repeated attempts to become prime minister have been foiled in the Byzantine power corridors of the Delhi durbar. What Pawar has been, though, is a tireless, resourceful leader, and an astute political negotiator, living by the ad-age of “no permanent friends or enemies in poli-tics, but permanent interests”. This has enabled him to build a wide network of friends and allies across party lines. When he turned 75 in 2015, the entire political class, from Narendra Modi to Sonia Gand-hi, were in attendance — the same Sonia Gandhi whose foreign origins had led Pawar to leave the Congress in 1999, but with whom he unhesitatingly forged an alliance in Maharashtra and at the Cen-tre. It is this capacity to cut through personal and ideological divides that have sustained “Pawar power” over the years. He was, in a sense, the original coalition-era politician. His Progressive Democratic Front-led government in Maharashtra in 1978 brought together the then Jan Sangh and socialists under one umbrella. And while the Shiv Sena was ostensibly a political opponent, Pawar never targeted Sena supremo Bal Thackeray beyond

a point. Whether out of mutual respect or mutu-al convenience, the Pawar-Thackeray equation is proof of the politics of conciliation that has marked Maharashtra’s landscape. Unlike a West Bengal or a Tamil Nadu, where fierce individual battles are waged and political adversaries vilified and even jailed, Maharashtra’s politics is built around quid pro quo deal-making. To some extent, the Fadnavis-Amit Shah-Modi brand of “take-no-prisoners”, highly competitive politics disrupted Maharashtra’s rel-atively stable ecosystem. With corruption charges and FIRs being filed against political rivals, a sud-den fear factor crept into the political class. Those who joined the BJP were assured of “protection”, while those who did not were targeted by the en-forcement authorities. An insecure, even hostile environment was created where the BJP’s long-standing ally, the Shiv Sena, was convinced that their ruling coalition was out to finish them. As was the Congress, shaken by Shah’s boast of a “Con-gress-mukt Bharat”. It is this “fear factor” that Pawar has successfully been able to exploit, while stitching together what seemed like an utterly fantasy proj-ect when the election results were announced. It isn’t anti-Modiism as much as a “fear” of the Mo-di-Shah-Fadnavis triumvirate that has brought together political parties, which have little in common, apart from the need for sheer survival. Whether the Maharashtra alliance lasts is uncer-tain, but what is clear is that regional parties find the idea of a dominant BJP a scary prospect. While the prime minister talks of “co-operative federal-ism” , the truth is that the BJP has made every effort to downsize regional forces, leading to fractured re-lationships. It happened to the Telugu Desam Par-ty in Modi-1, it’s now happened with the Sena in Modi-2. The BJP’s big two may be seen as a polit-ical Chanakyas but “Chanakya-neeti” cannot be built around threats and intimidation of smaller parties. It needs deft handling of bruised egos and a bit of give-and-take, rather than bullying peo-ple into submission. The spectre of a “dossier raj”, where State power is used to crush political op-ponents, breeds suspicion and enmity. Which is where Shah-Modi could perhaps take a leaf out of the Pawar playbook. Realpolitik is not just about the stick, it is often about the carrot too. Post-script: On the campaign trail in Maharashtra, I asked Pawar whether he had ever contemplated retirement. His response was a dis-missive: “Abhi to main jawan hoon (I am young right now)!” Moral of the story: The eternal elixir of youth in politics is the scent of power.

The author is a TV anchor and presentor.

The Secret of Sharad Pawar’s

SuccessThe original coalition era politician, his capacity to cut through divides has

sustained his power

“ It is this “fear factor” that Pawar

has success-fully been able

to exploit, while stitching together what

seemed like an utterly fantasy project when the election results were an-

nounced. It isn’t anti-Mo-diism as much as a “fear”

of the Modi-Shah-Fad-navis triumvirate that has brought together

political parties, which have little in common,

apart from the need for sheer survival. Whether

the Maharashtra alli-ance lasts is uncertain,

but what is clear is that regional parties find the

idea of a dominant BJP a scary prospect.

BOOK REVIEW 13THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

Shadows Beyond The Ghost Town by Shafi Ahmad

“Democracy had been used as a whore and abused at will during previous elections” Novel writing is a chal-lenging job; a labourious task

allied with uncompromising evalu-ation and out-and-out clarification. Shafi Ahmad’s is popularly known for his Half Widow, but his style of writing Shadow Beyond The Ghost Town cannot be ignored. He seems a natural story teller with ample elab-orations to be appropriate to trans-mit what otherwise is most often concealed under the concentrated array of allegories and literal lavish-ness. The narrator in this novel has aptly used a local narrative in third person, turning this work into a re-markable piece of art by obeying the rules of a third person narration. The novel opens at Arwan-pora village with Kashmir Dispute running in the background with a survey by a group of military offi-cials to occupy the orchard of Ama Ganie. The novel takes us back to the family history of the protagonist who won the heart of an overseer (Bob Jee) and emerged as a contrac-tor to take pleasure from the luxu-ries of life. Insurgency of 1989 soon finds its link with 1987 elections which was high jacked beyond nar-rative. The martyrdom of Mirwaiz Molvi Mohammad Farooq and the severity of youth joining militancy compel Ama Ganie to inspire his younger son to cross the border. This move by Ama Ganie acts as a double edged sword. One to handle a man who had recently joined the mili-tant group who along with his group mates once spend the night at Ama Ganie’s newly constructed house. The man was insulted by Ama Ga-nie ruthlessly when he was working with a department of which Ama Ganie was enjoying grandmother-ly airs. And the second was to stay safe from the militants. The decision of sending his son has come to fore through a soliloquy thus revealing the conflict Ama Ganie was under-going with himself. In the mean time Ama Ganie’s orchard was captured by army to enjoy security. Ama Ga-nie’s self proclamation received a se-rious jolt when he failed to read the mind at work by military officer who called six members of the village whose sons had taken arms, thus ex-posing them before the entire village on one side and being in close prox-imity with the relatives of rebellions to control the militants indirectly on the other hand to snatch their com-forts. The novel further expands in the form of Ama Ganie’s elder son Nazir who moved to Srinagar to study Engineering at NIT and in the meanwhile Farooq the young-er son returned after getting armed training across LoC. A lady military official Lt. Arti who had developed friendship with daughters of Ama

Ganie arrived at the house where she passed a warm glare at Nazir. A crackdown by army held many youngsters of the village whose rel-atives directly approached Ama Ganie for being friendly with army major. His meeting with major fur-ther disturbed Ama Ganie for he was informed to take due care of his son who is active and on the hit list of the army. The information dis-turbed him. The warm smile of Arti had compelled her to drop a message at NIT through a peon. The brief message had a lengthy romance in stored. Meet me near SBI in can-tonment area on 28th 3p.m. The change of fortune is well seen in this section of the novel when the father of a man who had joined the militancy and compelled Ama Ganie to push his son into militancy was pleading for his son’s release from Ama Ganie. Arti and Nazir had obeyed their hearts and met after Arti was shifted to Srinagar cantonment hospital after she regis-tered a complaint of falling health. The young hearts only promised to meet again for the reason best known to them. Ama Ganie finally con-vinced Major Salvan to strike a deal: Fifty thousand for pure-ly innocent. Seventy five for upper ground worker. One Lac for Kashmiri

trained militant Two hundred thou-sand for Pak trained one. Ama Ganie followed the deal by adding hundred folds to loot the relatives. The goodwill encour-aged major Salvan to resume band saw for the logs would be supplied easily but on fifty fifty bases. The deal was finalized. A gesture of friendship encouraged major Salvan to arrange iftiyar party on one hand and on the other Arti’s invitation to daughters of Ama Ganie for breakfast at the camp. Romance now opens more profoundly between Arti and Na-zir and the daughter of Ama Ga-nie Ruby was also being watched by the captain. The situation in the novel takes a U-turn when David approached Ama Ganie for support and later Ama Ganie’s money mint-ing process was challenged, ensuring his fall. The love affair between Ruby and the captain reached to one and all and Ama Ganie resolved the situ-ation by declaring she must be mar-ried soon. David, a common enemy of major Salvan and Ama Ganie was attacked by renegades by the orders of major Salvan who earlier had de-manded Ama Ganie to use his son for the act. In between these tense conditions Ruby’s interest in captain severed that lead the killing of Shazi her sister--- honour killing as men-tioned by the narrator, but the guess is open, so many people are marked. The tragedy doesn’t end here Fa-

rooq’s unmarked grave was located by Rashid with the help of a villager who had buried him on the demand of army. The shades of the ghost town fell upon Arti when Nazir was abducted, later traced by Arti and Ruby, thus ends the love story of Arti and Nazir. The mastermind major Salvan’s suicide with his service re-volver resolved many questions. The novel ends with a new beginning as Art and Ruby both visualizing the future generation playing in the or-chard. Besides this strong story line, there are numerous micro sto-ries depicting typical Kashmir cul-ture. These mini tales are in no place felt as digressions, but an integral part of the plot. Through these well-knit micro details, a foreign reader will be guided to peep into the very core of the Kashmiri culture. Tra-ditions, beliefs, customs, religious offerings and orchard chemistry be-sides proper use of military and local narrative are the features of this nov-el. Shafi Ahmad has emerged as a se-rious novelist by providing us a vivid space to peep down the story line. The characters have been suitably handled, characterization is apt, di-alogues are severe and above all the structure of the novel is maintained. One can easily recognise the inter-nal conflict that with requirement of the plot is heightened to prescribe an intense climax and the final fall. Humanity wrapped in the uniform has excellently been displayed and the vice versa. The diction is sim-ple. There are three narrative Shafi Ahmad has skillfully employed one: a common narrative of Ama Ganie, the counter narrative by major Sal-van and in between these two nar-rative most powerful narrative __ the narrative of unmarked graves of which Arti has emerged as a strong voice. All these narrative have been handled superbly by Shafi Ahmad, making his a serious observer for which he honestly needs applaud. The postscript__ a narrative that “beyond doubt” released by APDP. The novel is overall a good read, however, and better translation and better layout would have added grace to the novel. ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Mushtaq B.Barq is a Columnist, Poet and Fiction Writer. He is the author of “Feeble prisoner, “ Wings of Love” and many translation works are credited to the author like “ Verses Of Wahab Khar” and “ Songs Of Sochkral”

HEALTH CARE 14THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

Chilblains Also Known As “SHU”

DR AABID ALTAF WANI

Chilblains also known as “Shu” in Kashmi-ri are very common skin problem among people. It is also very common in Kash-mir due to cold weather especially expe-rienced in the forty days of Chilai kalan

which starts from December 21 to January 31. Peo-ple who are living in humid and cold climate know about Chilblains. Chilblains occur when your skin gets warm due to the exposure to the cold tempera-ture. Chilblains are an inflammation of the skin that is frequently accompanied by itching or burning. Also known as perniosis, they are caused as a reac-tion to exposure to cold and are most often found on the small toes, fingers, face or nose. They may also occur on areas that bear pressure, like a bunion. People who have poor circulation or a poor diet are at more risk for developing the condition.It usually takes 1 to 2 weeks to heal.

SYMPTOMS

Symptoms of a chilblain can include a redness or pal-lor of the affected areas, a numbness, and hot, tender, itchy skin and there may be ulcerated or bleeding le-sions. The areas may appear blue as they get congest-ed and swollen. When they dry out, they may leave cracks in the skin, leaving the body open to infection.

CAUSES

Chilblains are caused by excessive constriction of the blood vessels just beneath the skin and most frequently is caused by the cold. Damp living con-ditions, hormonal imbalance, a poor diet, being ane-mic or sudden immersion in very cold water or cold environments can also contribute to chilblains. Poor circulation is also a factor. If you are diabetic or suf-fer from other conditions that affect the circulation, use caution. Eating nutritious foods, exercising and wearing properly fitting shoes will help improve cir-culation to the affected areas. In cold weather, dress appropriately and don’t expose yourself to the ele-ments any longer than necessary. Severe pain and cracking may require a visit to the doctor for relief and infection prevention. If infection has already set in, it should be seen by a professional.

REMEDIES TO HEAL AND PREVENT CHIL-BLAINS

Chilblains are the result of exposure to cold. It creates red patches on your skin and sometimes it is painful. So you need to treat chilblains but how? Here are some remedies to heal and prevent chilblains which are listed below:

1.EXERCISE REGULARLY

Due to poor blood circulation, it may cause chil-blains. Doing exercise is the best way to get rid of chilblains. So, exercise is helpful to increase blood circulation. Before starting any exercise, you need to warm up your body with foot exercises.

2. INCREASE CALCIUM IN OUR DIET.Deficiency of calcium can increase the risk of chil-blains. So intake calcium to prevent chilblains.

STEPS TO USE CALCIUM TO TREAT CHIL-

BLAINS FAST:

Have food which is rich in calcium like cheese, milk, soybeans, yogurt, broccoli, white beans, salmon, for-tified orange juice, fortified cereals and others. By consulting a doctor, you can take calci-um supplements.3. USE ALOE VERA GEL TO GET RID OF CHIL-BLAINS.

Aloe Vera contains healing properties and anti-in-flammatory properties. It can help to alleviate pain and inflammation.Steps to Use Aloe Vera to Heal and Prevent Chil-blains:Apply this gel on the infected area.Massage with this gel to increase the blood circula-tion.After some time wash it off with water. Follow this procedure 2 to 3 times daily.

4. WARM WATER AND SALT TO HEAL CHIL-BLAINSThis is one of the best home remedies to heal chil-blains completely. It is an excellent choice to treat symptoms of chilblains such as redness and puffi-ness. All you need to do is heat a bowl of water and mix salt in it. Soak the affected areas of your skin in this water. Do this for the next few minutes to reduce the redness. Repeat this several times a day to heal chilblains completely.

5. ONION TO HEAL AND PREVENT CHIL-BLAINSOnion has antiseptic, anti-inflammatory and antibi-otic properties. These properties can help to reduce pain, itching, inflammation and swelling and also reduce the effect of infection.Steps to Use Onion to Treat Chilblains Fast:Take an onion and cut it into thick slices.With the help of slice of onion, rub it on your affected area. Leave it for fifteen minutes.Then use a warm wash cloth to wipe it off.Do this remedy for one to two weeks to heal and pre-vent chilblains.

6. COMBINATION OF GLYCERINE, HONEY,

EGG AND FLOUR

The combination of glycerine, honey, egg and flour is excellent for the fast recovery of chilblains. The paste prepared from these ingredients acts as insu-lation from cold. All you need to do is take a bowl and add one tablespoon each of glycerine, honey and egg. Crack one egg and whip it well. Mix all the in-gredients together and stir well. Apply this paste on the affected regions of the skin. Leave it for 6 to 8 hours or overnight. Wash it off with lukewarm water. Repeat this treatment on a regular basis to get rid of chilblains completely.

7. WARM CLOTHES TO PREVENT CHIL-BLAINS FAST

Wear warm clothes to keep your body warm. Wear scarf and hat to keep your head warm. By keeping yourself warm, you can reduce the symptoms of chil-blains.

OTHER USEFUL TIPS:Stop smoking as nicotine restricts the blood vessels that can make chilblains worse.Avoid wearing tight shoes and boots that can restrict the blood circulation to your feet and toes.Moisturize your feet and hands regularly.Have at least one hot meal during the day to keep your body warm.Wear warm clothes such as long boots, leg warmers, long socks.Keep yourself active to improve the blood circula-tion.Keep your house heated.To get essential, fatty acids include cold-water fish, and almonds. These foods help to get rid of chilblains.You can place wool or cotton between the toes to im-prove the blood circulation.Do not scratch your affected skin as scratching may damage your skin.Avoid exposure to the sun, especially after exposure to the cold.

Dr Aabid Altaf Wani is an Alternative Medicine Spe-cialist and can be mailed at draabidwani@gmail.com

POETIC EXPRESSION 15THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

SYED NOWREEN QADRI

The roads were many but you chose the hard

.Bleeding, you walked upon

the broken shards.Your blood became my ink,

your pain mytheme.

And I wrote the letter love, every time I heard

you scream.

Our infinities will meet beyond eternity.

Beyond the glimmer of the sparking stars

The damned dusk will be no match for ouraccursed love.

We’ll meet somewhere be-yond the red sunsets.

Beyond this dull bleak world.

And there I’ll shed off the cloak of fear and

hold on to you forever

I’m not real, just the product of your

imagination.

I’m the reality of dead dark night.

My faces are many, each a different truth.

Like the phases of moon, each perfect in its

own way.My veins filled with love, yet

without you,They’re as dry as a lake in

summer.I’m what I’m am only when I’m

with youWithout you I’m just the

mask everyone sees.

As those ashes called love, lay scattered on

the shores,The slightest gusts of breeze blew them away,In search of the beloved

they went far andwide

But alas! The wrecked piece remained avagabond forever

Excerpt from her poetry collection

“ silhouettes”

ADVERTISEMENT 16THURSDAY 12-DECEMBER-2019

Follow us on : www.facebook.com/kashmirpen editorkashmirpen@gmail.com kashmir_pen www.kashmirpen.com

DEBONAIR GROUP, REGAL BUILDING, REGAL CHOWK, SRINAGAR 190001 KASHMIRCustomer Care No. 0194-2479202, Email : purefoodkashmir@gmail.com ,

LICENCE NO 21018411000566

Net Wt.450 gm Net Wt.

500 gm

Net Wt.400 gm

Net Wt.100 gm