Rare Phone Call That Led To India-Pak Deal To Stop Cross-Border Firing

There has been a steady increase in ceasefire violations along the Line of Control.

A rare phone call between the Directors General of Military Operations of India and Pakistan on Monday spawned the latest ceasefire between the two countries in Jammu and Kashmir, sources have told NDTV, raising hopes among border residents after a steady increase in firing in recent years.

The India-Pakistan ceasefire was proposed and accepted by India in 2003 and broadly held till 2016 when the Uri terror attack took place. Between 2016 and 2018, there was a large escalation of ceasefire violations.

In 2018, a ceasefire proposed by Pakistan failed. Since then, there has been a huge stepping up of cross-border incidents with the two countries regularly exchanging artillery and machine-gun fire along the ceasefire line known as the Line of Control (LoC) that has separated the countries for decades.

According to sources, the hotline remains active between the militaries of both sides. A Major-ranked officer regularly speaks to the other side for routine matters. A Brigadier talks once a week. The Directors General of Military Operations speak rarely.