LoC villages cheer for green shirts
Ishfaq Tantry
Baramulla, March 30: The Wednesday's semi-final clash between India and Pakistan lived upto its reputation with
people glued to their TV sets across the valley, including places near Line of Control where they were seen cheering for their favourites in green shirts.
Most of the shops and business establishments in the border town of Uri remained closed in the second half of the day. Many of the hotels and restaurants in the town had put up TV sets for the cricket fans with some of them even offering free tea to the enthusiasts.
"Today I distributed free tea among the cricket lovers who watched India-Pakistan match in my hotel," said Zulfikar Ahmad, owner of Wathloo Hotel, where around hundred cricket lovers had gathered in the afternoon cheering for their favourite team.
Asked if he was bothered about loss of business activity, he said, "If my favourite team wins today, this loss means nothing. That is why I distributed free tea among the cricket fans as I am a big cricket lover myself."
The residents seemed in no mood to miss even a single ball of the match.
"In the morning, our bank received normal rush of customers but as the midday approached, every customer seemed in hurry, eager to catch up the first ball of the much anticipated match," said Muhammad Shafi, a senior official in J&K Bank's Uri branch.
Like majority of the shop owners in Uri town, Iqbal Ahmad also preferred to close his shop to watch the contest.
"I closed my shop for the day only to watch cricket on TV and cheer for my favourite team, Pakistan," said Iqbal while watching the match in a nearby hotel with other fans who cheered on fall of every Indian wicket.
Elsewhere in the villages along LoC, people kept themselves glued to the TV screens watching the match live with the aid of DTH antennas perched atop majority of the households in the area.
As per reports, majority of people in LoC villages like Lagama, Banday, Salamabad, Kamalkote, Chandanwari and Boniyar kept themselves busy watching live action from Mohali.
Elsewhere, villagers all along the Uri-Baramulla highway could be seen glued to their TV sets. At village Sheeri, cricket lovers could be seen watching their favourite team in action live on the television, which had been perched atop a balcony of a house overlooking the market place below. The people shouted and rejoice at every fall of wicket.
In Baramulla town, streets and market places wore a deserted look as majority of people, including shopkeepers, preferred to watch India-Pakistan cricket match indoors on their TV sets. Pertinently, the civil administration had declared Section 144 in the town, prohibiting assembly of people.