Azad Jammu Kashmir: Pandemic brings series of miseries

MIRPUR (AJK): The prevailing post-corona virus regime has badly affected the masses and brought multiple problems directly and indirectly in various parts of Azad Jammu Kashmir. The deadly pandemic outbreak in the liberated territory including the most busiest lake district of Mirpur, the ancestral abode of over a million of the UK-based Kashmiri expatriates.

The pandemic is not only hitting directly but also indirectly to the people travelling to and from this district for various parts of the country besides rest of the AJK district – bringing miseries in different forms – indeed due to the mismanagement on the part of the stake holders most particularly the local administration.

This situation appeared when during the recent complete week-long lock down in Mirpur city (March 1st to March 7th) a couple of young ladies (apparently studying somewhere in Pakistan) was seen crossing over Mangla bridge, the gateway to this part of AJK, on foot while dragging and struggling with their heavy suitcases to reach public transport parked on the other side, waiting for passengers in the adjoining Mangla Cant area.

One can imagine how did they reach Mangla from Mirpur & elsewhere in AJK, probably by hiring Taxis or other private transport as no public transport is allowed in or to go out of the district during the complete lock-down regime in particular.

This is a usual scene on the bridge in the days of lockdown, where young & old, women & children make their way, with their luggage, through long lines of private vehicles & goods carriers queued upon between so called international de facto border crossing between AJK and Pakistan where every vehicle/travelling citizen has to present his CNIC for inspection and recording by a police official. No other district in AJK has such a messy scene & complicated entry/exit SoP at crossing points linking to Pakistan which is in force since well before the rise of the pandemic.

“This utopian intention of curtailing the criminals and then the corona virus outside the district is far from giving any results except putting up our ugly & incompetent face before our own citizens, expats and visitors alike”, an independent observer said while expressing his dismay over the above miserable situation for the passengers travelling to and from AJK particularly ever since the outbreak of the pandemic.