CHURUNDA, Jan 1: Soldiers celebrate the new year here at the Line of Control (LoC) hours before the rest of the country does on Sunday night. They were forced to resume their nighttime responsibilities of patrolling and policing Pakistan’s border. However, at a short celebration arranged by the army and the locals to commemorate the occasion, they exchanged greetings over hot cups of tea, food, and a dance before heading back to their posts. In this quiet village in the Uri sector of Jammu and Kashmir, the celebrations began at 4 p.m. on a chilly Sunday. The villagers and the army assured one another that they will stick by each other through good times and bad.“The army has always been the first to help when a civilian has an issue. Local social activist Lal Hassan Kohli added, “And in times of need, civilians have stood shoulder to shoulder with soldiers.” The army planned the programme for the New Year’s celebration. I commend and express gratitude to the army for this. The army supports us in our most trying times, he said, if we encounter any difficulties. According to Kohli, the people in the area are grateful to the army for preventing the enemy from invading “our territory.” “The army commemorates all significant days together. Republic Day is fast approaching, followed by Independence Day in August. In the village, the soldiers also show up to weddings. Like brothers, we live here. We hope and pray that our relationship with the army endures,” he continued. The village sarpanch, Lal Din Khatana, claimed that such occasions enable everyone, even the soldiers, to forget about their troubles and have fun. At the Line of Control‘s zero point, we celebrate the new year with the army. It’s a great programme, and we hope that this custom will carry on in the future. These events allow us to forget about our everyday problems while also allowing the soldiers, who are serving overseas, to enjoy themselves, Khatana said.A local school teacher named Jehangir Lateef expressed gratitude to the army for guaranteeing a peaceful 2023 along the LoC in their neighbourhood. “I hope that we continue to live in harmony and that 2024 will be peaceful,” he continued. Following the brief celebrations, the soldiers returned to their jobs of patrolling the Line of Control while the civilians retired to their homes.
