Teetwal: The opening of relief camps along the Line of Control for the earthquake victims of Jammu and Kashmir and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir has hit a roadblock, with both Pakistan and Indian armies unable to evolve a mechanism to transport aid material . There seems to be lack of communication between the authorities of both sides. The Indian Army, on Friday, tried to send a boat across the Kishanganga river to ferry material for constructing a bridge to transportrelief material but it was objected to by the other side. A couple of hours later, the Pakistan Army tried to lower an empty boat and the Indian Army expressed its objection.

``Do not drop the boat yet,'' a soldier from the Kumaon Regiment shouted across the river but the Pakistani forces went ahead with their work.

Asked why he was stopping the Pakistanis, the soldier told PTI : ``Pehle hum ko mana kiya, hum kyon karnay denge." ("First they stopped us, now, why should we allow them.")

A Captain,along with some soldiers, rushed down the bank of the river and asked them to stop. The subsequent exchange of words could not be heard clearly in the roar of the water rushing downstream.

Several Pakistani helicopters, believed to be carrying bridge construction material, were flying around Teetwal village, many times crossing into Indian airspace, in an attempt to land at a makeshift helipad here.

Sources said Pakistani helicopters wanted to dump the relief material in Teetwal and ferry it to their side by boats for bridge construction. "The Indian Army will not allow it," they added.

The Pakistani Army has an operational helipad close to the proposed site of the bridge but as there is no land connectivity due to landslides, it is not able to reach the material through the territory controlled by it.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who spent his Id here, said the Jammu and Kashmir Government from this side was ready to make the relief camps operational at present.

- PTI

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