Land use Strategies for Safety of Settlements along Line of Control in Azad Kashmir

Abstract

Line of Control is boundary between Indian held Kashmir and Azad Kashmir / Gilgit- Baltistan. The region is disputed between India and Pakistan and heavy military clashes frequently occur along Line of Control. Civilian population residing close to Line of Control is attacked as a secondary target to put pressures on concerned government and military, in order to force them to submit to the demands of aggressor country. Residents of AJK, living close to Line of Control reside under constant fear of cross border firing, which adversely affects the social and economic fabric of their lives. International Humanitarian Law states that civilians residing in a conflict zone must be protected by opposing forces. In different volatile border regions of world, concerned countries have adopted various strategies to protect their population from effects of cross border firing. Noncompliance with humanitarian laws is leading to crisis situation in the study area. This merits a holistic disaster management strategy to mitigate the threats to local communities. In this study socio-economic impacts of cease fire violations on local population are quantified. The likely pattern of cross border deployment of weapons is studied, based on which a zone is defined in which settlements can be targeted during cross border firing. Keeping in view shielding effect of terrain, firing range and trajectories of different weapons deployed across the border, settlements are divided into different threat regions. Based on the nature of threat to different regions and lessons from international experiences certain physical measures and land use measures are suggested to protect local population. These land use measures are than evaluated against planning standards for hillside development and social considerations for relocation of residents.