SRINAGAR, Aug 17: Not a single Kashmiri crossed over to other side of the Line of Control (LoC) while 41 residents of Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) arrived here today to meet their relatives, separated in 1947 due to partition.
However, 30 returnees, including nine women and seven children also cross sides at the Kaman post, the last Indian military post on this side of the LoC, official sources said. They said not a single Kashmiri crossed over to PoK this time in the Karvan-e-Aman bus, operating between Srinagar and Muzaffarbad, since April 7,2005 when India and Pakistan agreed to allow travel of divided families on ‘Travel Permits’, instead of International passports.
They also said 28 PoK residents who had arrived here in previous buses returned to their homes after completing their stay in Kashmir. They included eight women and seven children. Sources added, 41 PoK residents, including 15 women and two children, arrived at Kaman post after crossing the Aman Setu, peace bridge on foot today to meet their separated family members.
Two persons, including a woman, who had gone to PoK also returned here after completing stay in PoK. The number of POK guests increases during the summer when weather is pleasant in the valley while it goes down in winter, mainly due to sub zero temperature.
However, more Kashmiris are travelling to POK during winter and the number goes down in summer. Thousands of divided families have benefitted after the introduction of the cross LoC bus. So far 963 POK guests visited Kashmir while only 142 Kashmiris visited across the LoC since January this year. (AGENCIES)
Follow our WhatsApp channel