Puran Chand Sharma
Our Union Govt. has unanimously passed a resolution in Parliament in the year 1994 resolving therein to retrieve Pakistan occupied Jammu ,Kashmir and Ladakh as well as China occupied parts of Ladakh at the earliest. It has become an annual feature for the country especially the people of Jammu & Kashmir whose forefathers and family members have experienced the horrors and the worst pangs of unfortunate partition of country which have caused deep rooted lacerating wounds in the psyche of Indian masses. Every year we renew our pledge and boost our determination to execute this historic decision. This noble idea of observing Sankalp Divas on annual basis is not purely symbolic or cosmetic but aims at keeping alive the spark in Indian minds to annex /recover our own territory from the clutches of wily Pakistan & China and the requisite campaign is being prominently spearheaded across the country by Jammu and Kashmir Study Centre, Jammu, Mirpur Balidan Bhawan Samity, New Delhi in collaboration with Jammu and Kashmir People’s Forum, New Delhi for creating awareness amongst the masses, building up strong public opinion and exhorting the Union Govt to initiate the process of implementation of Parliamentary Resolution for immediate vacation of Indian territories from illegal occupation of Pakistan and China. The apex leadership of the country should not have espoused the idea of immoral and unscientific division of the country at that critical juncture but instead must have resolutely resisted it with full might but that was not the destiny and the country has been facing the bitter consequences since inception. We just succumbed under persistent pressure from the inimical hardcore elements and let the country be brutally divided. This was a kind of unintentional folly out of misplaced fear psychosis. “In the candid opinion of Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar, the main architect of constitution, geographical division of the country based on population of Hindus and Muslims in respective parts of the country would be a blunder and further by not enforcing the complete transfer of population shall be a monumental blunder, the adverse consequences of which will be borne by our future generations.” The moot point at this crucial moment is that we cannot put the clock back but we are perfectly within our rights to retrieve our part of the country by making judicious use of diplomatic options or reasonable military action in line of our filial duty towards our motherland. But this is a herculean task which can’t be achieved without unflinching determination and undying will power. Unarguably symbolic celebrations, occasional get-togethers, reminders and remembrances do have ripple effect which slowly and steadily gets metamorphosed into positive impactful action. But to see this happen fast we need to initiate few important steps in a planned way on the following lines:- There are three buzz words which are indispensable for profound success in any great venture or daring deed, these are 1. Knowledge 2. Effort 3. Grace. It is, therefore, imperative to educate our upcoming generation in the matter of occupied territories of Bharat which have been illegally and forcibly annexed by our unfriendly neighbours China and Pakistan. Brief details are appended below:- POJK or Mirpur – Muzaffarabad which Pakistan calls as Azad Jammu and Kashmir. POJK has an area of 13297sq km. The territory primarily comprises the Mirpur District of Jammu, the bulk of Poonch and a portion of the North – Western Kashmir province of the Jammu and Kashmir state as it existed prior to 1947. Geographically, POJK falls in Himalayan Belt. Northern Districts namely Neelum, Muzaffarabad, Jhelum valley, Bagh, Haveli, Poonch and Sudhnoti are generally mountainous whereas Kotli, Mirpur and Bhimber in the south are plain. Jhelum River is the main river of POJK along with its two tributaries, the Neelum (KishanGanga) and Poonch which join Jhelum at Domail and Chomakh, respectively. Mangla Dam , with a capacity of 7. 475 million acre feet, stores most of the water of Jhelum to provide irrigation facilities to Pakistan, while submerging the Mirpur town and surrounding areas in POJK. Pakistan Occupied Territory of Ladakh (POTL):- The part of union Territory of Ladakh which is under occupation of Pakistan is called Gilgit-Baltistan. This Region was earlier called as ‘Northern Areas’ of Pakistan, an amorphous entity governed directly from Islamabad and comprising more than 85 percent of territory under Pakistan’s illegal occupation. Gilgit-Baltistan, a region of over 72000 square kilometres, is an area that has historically been of pivotal strategic importance. It is the ancient ‘AXIS OF ASIA’, where south, central and East Asian commence converged. It was historically India’s gateway to Central Asia. China occupied Territory of Ladakh (CoTL):- Territories under the occupation of China are Trans Karakoram Shaksgam valley, unilaterally ceded by Pakistan to china in 1963 as part of a boundary settlement, Aksai chin and western Ladakh , militarily occupied by china in 1962. Let us be clear that dispute between China and India is a border dispute and not a territorial one. Conclusion The burning need of the hour is to make the issue of occupied territories of our country a National issue. It must be our top most priority to educate our public especially youth on the vital contours of this matter of greater concern and significance and as to how our country was strong and prosperous because of access to these areas. Despite having a Parliamentary Resolution in our armoury, the narrative of status quo regarding these areas as a lost cause is still going on, which needs to be changed forthwith through the medium of series of motivational and awareness programmes for public, schools, colleges and university students. Teachers and parents must discuss and deliberate on this issue with youngsters persuade them to study the subject in detail for holistic comprehension. Govt of the times must also make up their mind to transform the National resolve into a living reality by making fair use of aggressive diplomatic moves and reasonable political channels and powerful military action as last resort. Let us be confident to achieve the impossible.
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