Blast that 'lit a sun at night' in a Jammu border village on May 7

Address post-conflict trauma in the community through target programs, says expert.

- VENUS UPADHAYAYA

India's border with Pakistan along which the May conflict took place in Jammu and Kashmir is one of the most complicated boundaries of the world. Partly international and partly disputed, this year the border experienced a new warfare, a new normal and a fresh need for trauma care.

In this special report based on an August trip to Akhnoor region of Jammu border stretch, the community in a village called Sungal for the first time publicly talked about their experience of the war and its aftermath. This is the second part of the report—the first was focused on how the residents experienced air wargames for the first time and the stopping of water in river Chenab—and the current is focused on two blasts reported by villagers between May 7 and May 10 in their locality.

This report also highlights the need for trauma care in the aftermath of the conflict in the border communities and why regular trauma care is essential to build resilience.

CRASH THAT 'LIT A SUN AT NIGHT'

The villages of Sungal reported two blasts in their vicinity before and after May 7. One of these according to them was caused by the crash of an Indian fighter jet in the wee hours of May 7. Another was caused by a cross-border missile in the early morning hours of May 8 in a village called Khugha near Sungal.

Shyam Lal Sharma, the chairman of SAMAH Devta Food and Agriculture Organization (FPO), a cooperative of 800 farmers from the adjoining border regions said that on May 6, he and his family attended the wedding reception of his nephew and returned home at around 11 pm and after a few hours at around 2am of May 7 they heard an extremely loud blast caused by the crash of a fighter jet.

"It erupted like a massive ball of fire. It turned everything even brighter than the sun would do. The pilots ejected out and while one was unharmed, another escaped with a fracture," he said, while adding that he can't tell what actually caused the crash.