Kashmir unrest: Pony walas in Pahalgam find it hard to earn livelihood

With the Kashmir Valley being on boil since past two months, people dealing with horse riding occupation have been badly hit. Meet Mushtaq Ahmad Khan, a pony wala who used to earn a good amount of money from tourists visiting Pahalgam, but since the last 81 days of shutdown, life has become very hard for Mushtaq to earn his bread and butter. Horse riders used to make Rs. 1,500 to Rs. 2,000 per day thus supporting their families. More than 2,500 horse riders have been hit by the continuous shutdown calls given by the separatist leaders every now and then. The picturesque Pahalgam has seen a decrease in the number of tourists ever since the shutdown.