The Neelum River’s Painful Divide
Neelum Valley, AJK: The body of 19-year-old Nosheen was recovered from across the Line of Control after a three-day search operation in the Neelum River, highlighting the challenges of retrieving bodies from areas separated by the heavily restricted border.
Nosheen, a resident of Upper Neelum who had been married for seven months, died on October 12 after jumping into the river between Lawat and Nagdar, according to information available locally.
Her body was initially spotted on the opposite bank before disappearing from view. It was later sighted around 8 a.m. on Wednesday, October 14, opposite Keran, on the Indian-administered side of Kashmir.
Although the two banks were only a few hundred metres apart, recovering the body required communication between the forces on both sides of the Line of Control. The Pakistan Army’s Keran unit contacted Indian forces to facilitate the operation.
The recovery effort involved the Pakistan Army, the Neelum District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), police, the Kashmir Boating Club in Sharda, and local residents. Strong currents hampered the initial attempt, but rescue teams eventually recovered the body with the help of boats.
The DDMA Neelum team subsequently handed over the body to Nosheen’s family.
The incident underscores the humanitarian difficulties faced by communities living along the Neelum River, where families with longstanding ties across the Line of Control can find themselves unable to reach loved ones during emergencies.
For Nosheen’s family, the distance between the riverbanks was only a few hundred metres. Bringing her home, however, required three days of searching, coordination and a challenging rescue operation.
