Pune girls travel to LoC to celebrate Raksha Bandhan with Kashmiri brothers and soldiers

Raksha Bandhan is a special festival celebrated in most parts of India but the UT of Jammu and Kashmir has hardly seen such a celebration. However, unlike previous years, Raksha Bandhan was celebrated this year for the first time in J&K, when a few young ladies from Pune decided to celebrate the festival of Raksha Bandhan with their Kashmiri brothers. Celebrations were carried out with full zeal and vigour in the mesmerizing villages of Machhal, Pushwari, Katwar and Dabpal from 19th to 22nd Aug 2021. The event was coordinated by the Indian Army at Machhal valley.

Pune girls travel to LoC to celebrate Raksha Bandhan

The celebration became a grand success due to the initiative of a few young ladies who volunteered to come forward for such a heartwarming event. Miss Gauri Hemant Kinikar along with her mother Mrs Sadhana Kinikar, sister Miss Shatakshi Kinikar and colleagues from Law College, Pune, Miss Shivani Joshi and Miss Saie Nandukar participated in this event. They celebrated the auspicious occasion of Raksha Bandhan with their Kashmiri brothers.

Ms Gauri Kinikar and her colleagues' decision to come to a far-flung area for such a sweet cause was not an easy one. Highly motivated defence aspirants, these young ladies worked day and night to gather funds through fundraising, and launched online campaigns for this cause.

A large number of people from Maharashtra and also from across India volunteered and contributed to their campaign. It was heartening to know that the campaign was oversubscribed and a large number of people all across India contributed to the same.

The celebrations were conducted in Machhal village, where eminent civil dignitaries, Army officers, local heads and villagers were present. The event culminated with the Raksha Bandhan celebrations at Machhal garrison on August 22, which was conducted on a large scale, where a large number of local youth as well as army personnel participated in the event. A large proportion of local youth, as well as army personnel, were seen with moist eyes during the celebrations.

When asked about the source behind their motivation for such an event, Ms Khinikar proudly said that she feels that her Kashmiri brothers need to know more about the country and said that she wants to make them feel like a part of this great nation. Ms Shatakshi said that she is so glad to see the kind of inquisitiveness portrayed by the young girls of Machhal valley towards progression and self-awareness.

Ms Sadhana was full of tears to see her daughters tying the Rakhi to Kashmiri brothers as well as army personnel. “I am so proud to be the mother of them who has come up with such an initiative and the boldness exhibited in doing this event”, she replied. Events like these will work as a catalyst to further bridge the gap between Kashmiris and the rest of the Indian's post abrogation.

“I miss my sister and the celebrations we have at home, but I’m glad and cheerful to see our young sisters who came all the way from Pune to tie the Rakhi and this reminds me of my sister tying the Rakhi to me,” said one of the soldiers, who was in tears as he was overwhelmed with emotions.

The villagers of Machhal, Pushwari, Katwar and Dabpal were full of awe and curiosity to see such activity in Machhal valley. They displayed full enthusiasm to participate in this event. This is for the first time that a group of girls have come to tie Rakhi for the Kashmiri brothers.

“This is an emotional moment, we are so happy to see our sisters coming all the way from Pune to our villages to tie the Rakhi on this auspicious day. We are so delighted and our emotions are overwhelming as this is for the first time such a noble gesture is been shown to us in our village, we are so proud to be part of this great nation” said the Sarpanch of Machhal village.

The villages later invited the girls to their homes for a cup of tea and some meaningful interaction. The young girls of Machhal village also came forward to render a hand in performing the sweet gesture of tying Rakhi. The young girls from the village also interacted with the visitors from Pune. 

The event holds special significance, especially on the eve of the two-year completion of the abrogation of Article 370. Many think tanks, especially our adversaries were predicting a different outcome of the decision to abrogate Article 370. However, the situation has turned out to be otherwise.

Kashmir is at crossroads right now, where the most convenient and reasonable path for the Kashmiris would be to embrace this nation to be their own. The abrogation of Article 370 has proved to be a revolutionary step in bringing the Kashmiris closer to mainstream India.

A perfect example was the recent active participation of the local populace in Independence Day celebrations and the most recent Raksha Bandhan celebrations. Each Rakhi tied to the wrists of these brothers amplifies the love and bonding between Indians across states. 

(Image: Republicworld.com)