In Snow-Covered Gulmarg, Soldiers At LoC Fight A Different Battle

The soldiers at the Line of Control or LoC in Kashmir are fighting a different enemy these days. The unpredictable weather has the Army worried about the innumerable lives at stake.

At the crack of the dawn, at least three Army jawans ready to patrol in the snow-covered Gulmarg sector. The drill starts off with a detailed briefing by a senior soldier who knows how to operate in such high attitude areas. The patrol party also called the area domination party treks 10 kilometres in knee-deep snow every day; the area which is also avalanche prone.

"Along with the enemy threat, there is always the threat of avalanches, when snowfall stops and it is bright and sunny the threat of avalanches becomes even greater", said soldier Ravinder Singh.

It is minus 10 degrees Celsius in higher reaches of Gulmarg, but that does not stop the Army personnel from dominating every inch of the ground physically. A special set of clothes and extra equipment - such as ropes to stay together and for passing across dangerous snowbound ridges - help the jawans achieve their daily tasks while operating in such high-risk areas.

Their opponents are not just armed intruders, but are accompanied by hostile weather conditions.

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"Whenever we get input about any possible infiltration bid, we carry out the patrol, whatever be the weather conditions, does not matter for us. We have to perform our duties with full alertness", said another soldier Ashok Singh.

In the snow-covered mountains of Gulmarg where the temperatures are always below the freezing point, the soldiers resort to ski patrolling when more distance has to be covered. Ski patrolling helps to reach areas far and wide in the quickest possible time.

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Heavy snow damages the fence along the LoC every year and till it is repaired, these jawans have to be on their toes every second. For the Army, winters near the border will be spent battling the weather storms.