The out-of-control line between India and Pakistan

Zameer Ahmad was building a community bunker on the Indian side of the Himalayan region's disputed frontier -- officially known as the Line of Control (LoC) -- when a sniper round fired from Pakistani-controlled territory struck the ground nearby. Ahmad and co-worker Sadakat Hussain took cover behind a wall in the village of Simari. "We finally decided to try to run but we both got hit," the 26-year-old told AFP.

Similar stories are told on both sides of the 344-kilometre (213-mile) partition amid ever-tougher talk between the nuclear-armed neighbours, who have fought two wars over the region in the past seven decades. India says at least 10 of its forces have been killed by artillery shells or sniper fire from Pakistani-controlled Kashmir since the start of November. Pakistan, in turn, accuses India of more than 3,000 violations in 12 months, leaving 29 dead, 250 civilians wounded, and hundreds of buildings destroyed or damaged.

Jura, just four kilometres from the LoC in the Neelum Valley, has been worst hit on the Pakistani side, authorities say. The shelling can last for hours or days, the town's residents told AFP. Half the homes have blast damage and the farmland is pock-marked with craters.

Shells also fall when markets are open and children are in school. "People just panic. It is like a stampede," said local school principal Mansoor Ahmad. Observers say though that neither India nor Pakistan is in a rush to find a solution.