May 14, 2025
By Iqra Manzoor & Aitzaz Ibrahim
Video by Mateen Ali
LAHORE
The announcement of a ceasefire on May 10th stemmed a looming Pak-India war, allowing life in Punjab’s cities to tentatively normalize. However, the specter of Indian drone strikes in urban centers – a departure from past conflicts confined to border regions – cast a long shadow, reviving painful wartime experiences for Punjab.
For the first time in 54 years, the specter of war loomed large across Pakistan, but especially over Punjab. The recent escalation with India shattered decades of relative peace, plunging the province into a state of palpable fear. Unlike previous conflicts confined to border regions, this standoff saw Indian drone strikes penetrate urban centers, reaching as deep as Lahore’s Walton Cantonment and stirring dormant memories of the last war with India – in 1971. The initial strikes, hitting a mosque in Bahawalpur and then Muridke, Sialkot, before reaching the heart of Punjab, instilled a deep-seated anxiety among the public, with many fearing that all-out war was imminent.
As this fear gripped Punjab’s cities, the Voicepk team ventured to some border villages near Lahore to gauge the situation on the ground. Here, a fragile sense of normalcy was beginning to return following the ceasefire. However, this too came after a period of significant upheaval. Between May 6 and 9, as tensions peaked, residents of villages like Hadiara, Gawandi, Rampura, and Wagah proactively evacuated their homes, seeking refuge beyond the BRB canal with their families and livestock, anticipating the worst.
Speaking to Voicepk, villagers recounted their experiences during the past few tense days.
One elder noted the stark difference in warfare compared to the conflicts of 1965 and 1971, emphasizing the shift from traditional ground battles to modern aerial threats. Among the older village residents, there had been a fear of escalation ad a reprisal of what they had experienced decades ago, therefore there was a strong desire for peace resonating among them. There were those who were not scared to face the issue, but preferred peace.
“We do not fear war,” one villager said, “but both neighbours should live with peace.”
Another villager echoed this sentiment, highlighting that “peace should prevail between both countries because on both sides, poor people are going to be affected by war.”
While expressing a clear preference for peaceful dialogue, the villagers also displayed unwavering solidarity with Pakistan’s armed forces. One resident asserted, “The people of Pakistan are standing in the frontline even before our army. We firmly stand with our forces and a befitting response will be given to India.” The sight of drones flying over their areas had been a stark reminder of the escalating tensions.
But an older villager cautioned against further conflict, emphasizing that “both countries will pay their price” and suffer significant losses. Recalling the peak of the tension, another resident described the evacuation process, the nighttime blackouts, and the fear that gripped the border region. He expressed relief at the return to calm after the ceasefire, allowing people to return to their lands near the border.
Several villagers spoke of the economic devastation that war could bring, stressing that even a single day of lost business is irreparable and that ordinary people bear the brunt of such conflicts. They voiced strong support for the Pakistani military, and expressed hope that India would now seek lasting peace.
The overwhelming sentiment in the border villages was a desire for peace and dialogue, recognizing the disproportionate suffering of the poor in times of war. While firmly standing with their armed forces in the face of aggression, their preference was clear: peace should prevail.
The ceasefire, confirmed by Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on May 10th, offered a glimmer of hope. However, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s subsequent statement about only “pausing” military action has injected uncertainty into the fragile peace. Despite reports of minor skirmishes along the LoC, the ceasefire largely holds, allowing displaced families to return to their homes in the Lahore border villages, where life is slowly returning to a semblance of normalcy, albeit one tinged with the recent memory of fear.