Though the Indian Army is sitting far away from the International Border in RS Pura sector, yet large a number of jawans are fighting a different battle of adding spice in the life of the displaced border residents.
For more than one week, these jawans have been serving three meals a day to thousands of border migrants at the Government school building in Deoli Relief camp.
These Army jawans were deputed to man the migrant camp after the State Government failed to mobilise adequate resources in the wake of increasing hostilities along the border. Majority of residents of Arnia are camping in the Deoli releif camp.
Without losing time the Army jawans pitched their tents on the school premises and set up separate enclosures providing medical, food and other basic facilities to the displaced border residents.
Jawans of the Indian Army had earlier served the border residents in August 2014 when hostilities had escalated between the two neighbouring countries along the International Border.
Border residents staying in the Deoli relief camp praise sincere efforts made by the Army to provide basic facilities to them in their hour of need. “Though we are living in the shadow of fear but we feel safe in the custody of the Indian Army”, Gharu Ram, a local resident of Arnia said.
Jawans engaged in their work said, “We feel satisfied when we serve food to these people. Apart from our routine duty we have been assigned the job of providing basic facilities to these border residents and we are trying our best to help them feel secure away from their homes”.
Taking cue from the effective management of the relief camps by the Indian Army even the State Government has geared up its machinery and running separate relief camps in Samba, Kathua, Akhnoor, RSPura, Pargwal and Jammu.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah himself visited these camps in the last week and directed the authorities to provide basic facilities to the border residents. Omar also tasted quality of food which was being served to the border residents.
The Jammu and Kashmir police too has chipped in with some help. Its men are deployed at these relief camps to regulate the distribution of relief.
Deputy Commissioner Jammu Ajeet Sahu made special arrangements across relief camps to facilitate women observing fast on the occasion of Karva Chauth. Special arrangements were made to serve basic food and provide pooja material to women in these relief camps so that they could observe traditional fast without facing any hardships. For hundreds of women it was a unique experience of breaking the fast in a relief camp after offering silent prayers.