The Hindu : National : Wait will continue for divided families

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Mar 22, 2005

National

National

Wait will continue for divided families

By Our Staff Reporter

POONCH, MARCH 21. Abdul Khaliq's brother lives across the Line of Control (LoC), seven km from his village in Poonch district, and Khaliq has waited for the last five decades for the `softening' of the LoC to meet him. The decision of the two Governments to start a bus service has given him hope.

But for the time being, Khaliq's wait would continue as his name does not figure in the list of passengers who will travel on the Srinagar-Muzaffarbad bus service.

Khaliq is among those belonging to the number of divided families living along the border districts that had applied for the permission to visit Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK). The irony is that even if he gets permission to board the Muzaffarabad bus, he will have to travel more than 900 km to reach his destination as first he will have to come to Jammu city which is 200 km away and then to Srinagar, a distance of 350 km. The onward journey is nearly 250 km more and then the final journey to the respective village.

The real comfort, according to the divided families, will be the opening of the Poonch-Rawlakot road which would unite the maximum number of families in the State compared to any other route along the LoC.

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