Connectivity, Cooperatives and Capacity Building: 3C Approach for the Remotest Region of Lohai Malhar (Jammu) with National Security Issues

The security situation across the western Shivalik regions, south of the Pir Panjal Mountain range in the Jammu region has become volatile since mid-2024 when a terrorist attack on a tourist bus on June 9 killed nine people in Reasi. With that started a new phase of attacks and threats in the region particularly in the otherwise calm mountain ranges of Kathua where the Indian army was last stationed until mid-2000. With increasing threats the Indian government had to redeploy thousands of defense personnel in the Shivalik altitudes of Jammu after two decades. Moreover the remoteness of certain regions continues to add to the situation’s vulnerability, in particular those areas which have a long standing history of terrorist activities. If further neglected, these regions will continue to be a national security threat for India. Lohai Malhar is one such remote region of the Kathua district of Jammu with a unique history of terrorism. It continues to face multiple impediments to meeting the modern parameters of development. In this context this paper provides a pragmatic three-fold approach titled “3C Approach: Connectivity, Cooperatives and Capacity Building” to achieve sustainable development of regions like Lohai Malhar. It reinforces the need to promote inclusive development of remote regions in Jammu and Kashmir to deal with the geo-economic nature of terrorism.