Safina Nabi
CHENAB VALLEY, Jammu and Kashmir—Shama Begum, wearing a traditional shalwar kameez and a pink scarf draped over her head, sits in her kitchen in Dungduro village, her back pressed against a cracked wall. Now in her late 40s, she grew up in Sewarbatti, not far from Kishtwar district, about a 155-mile journey by car from the city of Jammu.
Her whole life has revolved around the Chenab River. Her family looked after the springs that fed their fields, herded cattle along the riverbanks, and fished the smaller streams, just as their parents and grandparents did. “I spent summers out in the fields, growing beans, rice, maize, fruit,” Shama said. “We used to rest under the trees. But now, we’ve lost our land and cattle.”
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