"Bunkers Saved Our Lives": Jammu And Kashmir Villagers After Pak Shelling

Last week, two Border Security Force personnel were injured during Pak firing in the sector but the situation was brought under control due to a flag meeting between local commanders of the BSF and the Pakistan Rangers.

Pakistan's unprovoked ceasefire violation in Jammu and Kashmir's Arnia sector, which began Thursday evening and continued till 3 AM today, forced people to abandon homes in the border village of Bulleh Chak and run for their lives from mortar shells. A woman called Ekta told news agency ANI, "First there was limited firing. Then a big mortar shell hit our house at 8 PM (on Thursday). The kitchen was damaged... all glass windows have broken (but) by God's grace, we were saved..." #WATCH | J&K: During unprovoked firing by Pakistan, residents of the border village in the Arnia area spent their night in bunkers.A resident says, "...These bunkers are quite big... So they are good for safety. Suddenly, the firing started at night...We come to bunkers at… pic.twitter.com/daX5axHCea #WATCH | J&K: A resident of a border village in the Arnia areas says, "...Bunkers do help us... When shelling occurs in our homes, it gets destroyed... It was safe here. They help us to save our lives..." pic.twitter.com/DhmFISjWzE

The village's Sarpanch, Dev Raj Chowdhary, told ANI Ekta and her family had spent the night in their shelled home, praying no further mortars would land on their heads.

Others, who spoke to ANI after the firing and shelling subsided, said they sought shelter in battle-scarred bunkers - in effect, empty underground rooms with no amenities and riddled with bullet holes - that dot the region. And it is to these bunkers that scared locals run to whenever there is shelling.