Uri villagers vacate homes amid heavy shelling, panicked by announcements from Pakistani side

Shelling began from Pakistan side around 11.30 am on Saturday, hitting the three border villages of Churanda, Silikote and Tilawari in Uri, and leaving several houses damaged. ( AP Photo)

AMIDST the most intense cross-border shelling in the Uri sector in Kashmir since 2003, on for nearly a week now, fresh panic was set off on Saturday following announcements from the Pakistan side asking Uri villagers to vacate their houses.

Evacuation has been on in the area along the Line of Control since Thursday, and by Saturday evening, around a thousand villagers had moved to Uri town as the administration moved in to calm the scared villagers. An alert was sounded for two power projects operating in the region, asking officials to take necessary precautions.

As the Indian troops “retaliated with force” to the Pakistani shelling, for the first time since the 2013 ceasefire, artillery fire was seen in the Uri sector. There has been regular exchange of fire and mortars between the two sides here since Monday, with the Line of Control (LoC) falling silent in the Jammu region for the past few days.

Shelling began from Pakistan side around 11.30 am on Saturday, hitting the three border villages of Churanda, Silikote and Tilawari in Uri, and leaving several houses damaged. Silikote villagers said that soon after, there was an announcement over a loudspeaker by suspected Pakistani soldiers asking them to vacate their houses.

“They asked us to vacate our houses by 12.30 pm,” said a villager. “This created panic and we started leaving the villages.”

Deputy Commissioner, Baramulla, Nasir Naqash confirmed hearing about the announcements from the Pakistan side. “This could be a military strategy. This could be a strategy to create fear,” he told The Sunday Express.

The government used ambulances as well as deployed private vehicles to evacuate the villagers. Naqash said the villagers had “voluntarily” shifted out to accommodation provided by the government at Uri town, in a higher secondary school.

“The situation is tense,” said Sub-Divisional Magistrate Dr Sagar D. “Around 7,000-8,000 people are affected. We have evacuated around a thousand people.”

While the Army refused to comment on the announcements made from across the border, it accused Pakistan of violating the ceasefire. “There was unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan in the Uri sector. Our troops are retaliating,” Defence spokesman Col. Rajesh Kalia said.

For all the latest India News, download Indian Express App