Spiritual bliss for Kashmiri children in Dharamsala

For the thirty-one Kashmiri youngsters, Dharamsala, the seat of the Dalai Lama, represents a world of solace and peace, far removed from the violent environment that often rears its ugly head in the Kashmir Valley.

By Hemant Chauhan

Dharamsala (Himachal Pradesh), Sept. 17 : For the thirty-one Kashmiri youngsters, Dharamsala, the seat of the Dalai Lama, represents a world of solace and peace, far removed from the violent environment that often rears its ugly head in the Kashmir Valley.

Undertaking a fortnight-long trip to Himachal Pradesh as part of the Indian Army's "Operation Sadbhavna", the trip was aimed at exposing the children to a different way of life other than their own.

According to Colonel Pushkar, the army feels these children who lead quite a difficult life in the valley, will learn a lot from their experience.

"The aim is that they can build bridges of friendship, meet other people, see their style of living and how different it is from the way they are living. In this way, they can even get to learn something," said Colonel Pushkar, Programme Coordinator.

The "Sadhbhavna Project" also runs vocational training institutions and promotes health awareness programmes.

Launched for the first time in 1998, "Operation Sadbhavana" has focused on several key areas. They are quality education, women empowerment, better health care and community development.

The underlying theme of Operation SADBHAVNA has been to 'help the people of Jammu and Kashmir to help themselves'.

The projects undertaken under Operation SADBHAVANA have yielded enormous dividends. People have understood its purpose.

The Army runs several such peacetime projects with a focus on health, education and road building.

ANI