Eid Mubarak
This morning, the valley wakes as it always has to the mist lifting slowly off the Dal, to the azan floating over old city rooftops, to the smell of sheer chai and bread freshly baked. This morning is Eid. And we, at Kashmir Media House, lay down our pens for one quiet moment, and speak not as journalists, but as neighbours.
To every family across this valley in Sopore and Shopian, in Bandipora and Budgam, in the lanes of old Srinagar and the villages tucked into the mountains we say: Eid Mubarak. May your homes be full of warmth today, and your tables never short of grace.
“Thirty days of hunger, prayer, and patience
have brought you here. This morning belongs to you.”
To the nine families of Nowgam who are still in grief who welcome this Eid carrying a wound that no celebration can yet reach we do not forget you. We have not moved on. Your loss sits with us at this table. May this day bring you, if not joy, then at least the quiet company of those who love you. You are not alone in your mourning.
To the Kashmiri students in Iran counting days, watching calendars, far from the sound of their mothers’ voices on Eid morning we say: your home misses you. Every seat left empty at a family table today is felt. Come back safely. The valley is waiting.
To the soldiers on the Line of Control the young men of the Indian Army standing guard tonight where the cold does not forgive you will not be home for Eid. Your family will look at your chair this morning. We see your sacrifice, and this morning, this newspaper bows its head to you.
To the men and women of the Jammu and Kashmir Police, the civil administration, the doctors, the nurses, the teachers who reported to duty this Eid you are the quiet spine of this society. Your service is not invisible to us.
“To those who govern this land in Srinagar,
in Jammu, and in New Delhi we ask only this:
let the peace of this morning last longer than the day.”
To the Honourable Lieutenant Governor, the Chief Minister, and the officials of the government Eid is a reminder that every file on your desk carries a human face. Govern with that face in mind. The people of this valley have known patience for decades. Reward it with justice, with jobs, with dignity.
To the intellectuals, the scientists, the poets, the students in universities from Delhi to London to Dubai wherever you are today, carry Kashmir with you. Not as a wound to show the world, but as a home you are proud of. You are its future, and its future is bright if you choose it to be.
To every Kashmiri living outside India, in the Gulf, in the diaspora spread across five continents Eid Mubarak. Distance does not dissolve belonging. You remain part of this story.
Thirty days of Ramzan asked something difficult of all of you: restraint, reflection, faith in what cannot yet be seen. This morning is the answer to that faithfulness. Let it be received fully with open arms, with forgiveness where it is owed, with a phone call to someone you have been meaning to call.
This valley has survived winters that seemed endless. It has buried its dead and still planted its orchards again in spring. That is not ordinary. That is a people of extraordinary grace. Today, we celebrate that grace.
From every journalist, editor, photographer, and press worker at Rising Kashmir to every community, every faith, every household that has trusted us with its stories we say simply:
Eid Mubarak. May this morning be the beginning of something kinder.
To Our Readers, Our Team
Together we report, together we celebrate
Hafiz Ayaz Gani (Editor-in-Chief)
Tamheed Bukhari (Director)
Jaideep Singh Dhindsa (Consulting Editor)
Meer Yassir Ahmed (Executive Editor)
Fazil Qayoom (Chief News Editor)
Abid Bashir (Chief Reporter)
Shaharyar Bukhari (Marketing Head)
Aijaz Bhat (Manager)
Shafat Malik (Reporter)
Ishfaq Ahmad Dar (Sub-Editor)
Mudasir Kulloo (Sub-Editor)
Manohar Bhat (Sub-Editor)
Shah Abbas (Sub-Editor)
Mohd. Yousuf Darzi (Sub-Editor)
Shoaib Ahmad Wani (Sub-Editor)
Younus Rashid (Supervising Reporter)
Arif Khan (Reporter/Cameraman)
Mansoor Peer (Sub-Editor & Reporter)
Atif Qayoom (Reporter)
Mansoor Peer (Reporter)
Umar Raina (Reporter)
Arif Rashid (Reporter)
Idrees Bukhtiyar (Reporter)
Ovaise Gul (Reporter)
Sarfaraz Chak (Reporter)
Parvaiz Bhat (Reporter)
Inayat Zaffar (Accounts)
Ishrat Majid (Accounts)
Towseef Ahmad (IT/Website)
Sahil Iqbal (Senior Multimedia Reporter)
Khadija Kamili (Digital Editor)
Yasir Rather (Reporter/Cameraman)
Musaib Fayaz (Video Editor/Cameraman)
Ada Bhat (Social Media Manager)
Danish Bhat (Online Editor)
Insha Shirazi (Online Editor)
Neelofar Yattoo (Online Editor)
Iqsan Bhat (Layout Designer)
Showkat Malla (Layout Designer)
Feroz Khan (Layout Designer)
Ali Mohd. (Layout Designer)
Owais Battoo (Layout Designer)
Bashir Bhat (Layout Designer)
Saqlain Hyder (Layout Designer)
Javaid Ahmed Wani (Layout Designer)
Sabia Amin (Receptionist)
Arshad Ahmad Wani (Billing)
Mohammad Rafiq (Driver)
Manzoor Ahmad Beigh (Staff Member)
