Mehbooba Mufti asked people to start initiatives that make pilgrims feel welcomed, respected and protected.

Himachal Pradesh Governor Kavinder Gupta drew parallels between the current crackdown on protestors in PoJK and Pakistan's 1971 atrocities in East Pakistan that led to the creation of Bangladesh.

Islamabad has long viewed political mobilisation in PoK through an external lens of alleged Indian 'interference'. But the recent uprisings in the region lays bare the limits of its own policy.

Two senior leaders, Vikar Rasool Wani and Tara Chand, are leading the rival faction against state Congress president Tariq Hamid Karra

"No more we have to abandon our homes because of shells fired by trigger-happy Pakistani soldiers," says Garu, a resident of a border village

The 57-day pilgrimage to the holy Amarnath cave shrine in Jammu and Kashmir is scheduled to be held from July 3 to August 28 this year.

Vaid's remarks come at a time when PoJK has witnessed widespread protests led by the JAAC over rising wheat flour prices, power tariffs and the alleged lack of political rights.

The agitation in PoK and the attention it is attracting around the world is a massive blow to the Pakistani narrative on Jammu and Kashmir.

In a statement, the Chief Minister's Office said that Omar Abdullah also highlighted the need for continued support from the Government of India.

During preliminary questioning, Javid Ali told authorities that he had gone to a nearby river to bathe and inadvertently strayed across the Line of Control (LoC).

Bhaderwah's lavender story has also found recognition at the national level. Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the region's purple revolution in his Mann Ki Baat programme.

To understand PoK, one must go back to 1947. When British India was partitioned, the Indian Independence Act gave princely states three choices: join India, join Pakistan, or remain independent.

Likening the situation in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoK) to the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, former Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police SP Vaid accused Field Marshal General Asim Munir of acting like General Dyer.

Over 50 British Parliamentarians have urged Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper to intervene as a communications blackout and security crackdown grip Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

Omar Abdullah said that he will be writing to all the opposition parties to join the march at the start of the Monsoon session of parliament next month.

While most of India is unlikely to witness bright auroras, people in Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir, and other high altitude northern regions may have a chance.

Recent elections in Gilgit Baltistan - and the protest note India had to issue for them - lay bare concerning but oft-ignored realities.

The musical evening was organised by FICCI FLO Jammu & Kashmir under its 'Jammu Yuva' programme, an initiative aimed at raising awareness about the drug menace and how it is jeopardising the future of the younger generation.

Union Minister Jitendra Singh said the lavender festival in Jammu and Kashmir's Bhaderwah valley has transformed the region into a national hub of lavender cultivation and aroma-based entrepreneurship

The fire broke out around 5 am, engulfing an entire row of shops made of wood and tin.

The officer, a Lieutenant, was part of the troops engaged in Operation Sherawali, a search-and-destroy mission that entered its 16th day on Saturday.

P Harish reiterated that all matters pertaining to Jammu and Kashmir are strictly internal to India, and the Union Territory "is and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India".

The exercise also simulated the grimmest scenarios: roads washed away by flash floods and villages marooned on cliff edges.

Pakistan had accused the Omar Abdullah of being an accomplice to the "defacement" of Muslim identity of J&K.