Adopted by Army, Teetwal on LoC emerging as a glittering village

Teetwal, Line of Control, Sep 13 (UNI) Devastated by last year's October eight killer earthquake, Teetwal, the bowl shaped ravaged valley in north Kashmir is emerging as a glittering model village.

Despite being very close to the border, the village has never witnessed a single incident of militancy. The most distinct feature of the village that makes it unique is that it has a Sikh village in a largely Sunni population which is so well integrated with the rest of the population that it can become a model for the rest of the country to emulate.

Jammu and Kashmir Governor Lt General (Retd) S K Sinha, during his day-long visit to the area yesterday, lauded the residents for pushing behind the earthquake tragedy to embark on a path of progress.

He complimented the civil administration and the Army for the stupendous success in rehabilitation of the people affected.

The village adopted by the Army for all round development, after the massive earthquake is emerging as a model village.

General Sinha visited the local schools for boys and girls and different segments of the community centre housing a health club, tailoring and knitting units, computer section, besides the library and interacted with the inmates.

After the rescue operations, the biggest challenge was to provide relief and ensure rehabilitation of the earthquake victims, the Governor said.

He noted that at this hour of need the entire nation stood behind their hapless brethren and supplemented the efforts of reconstruction.

Various voluntary organisations like Radha Swamy Trust and Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board were among the first to raise prefabricated shelter sheds for the roofless population, he said.

Corps Commander, Lt General S S Dhillon gave a detailed briefing to the Governor about the mammoth effort put in by the Army in creating an envious model village with numerous state of the art facilities like schools, sports field, community development centre besides electricity and water supply schemes.

Tanghdar bowl stands out as an oasis of peace and harmony in a largely insurgency torn State. The region with a population of nearly 52,000, despite being right on the Line of Control, has never witnessed any militancy related incidents.

The Army has launched a host of schemes like augmented education facilities, vocational training, recruitment rallies, micro-hydel projects and organising of local sports meets which not only engage the local youth in a positive and constructive manner but are also instrumental in putting the Karnah tehsil on fast track development.

The Governor urged the Local Civil Administration and the Army to carry forward their mission of bringing cheer to the lives of those who suffered immensely during the earthquake.

UNI BAS SHB SND1400