English
Arabic
Chinese (Simplified)
Russian
Spanish
Urdu
Kupwara: In a sheer display of hospitality and integrity, as Kashmir and Kashmiris are known for, two individuals in north Kashmir’s Kupwara returned a highly valuable backpack of a German tourist, who had lost it while on a bike ride here on Tuesday.
The news of the lost backpack spread quickly across social media, when the tourist contacted and sought help from a prominent local journalist, Jahangir Lolabi. Within just one and half an hour of sharing the information, the backpack was returned with its rightful owner.
A message put across the social media by the local journalist read, “ATTENTION (₹20,000 Reward) Today (25 March) our visitor from Germany, namely Julian, lost his backpack in Lolab Valley/Kalaroos. The backpack fell from his motorbike when he was driving from Darpora to Kalaroos/Zamindar Gali.
The backpack is dark blue and inside the backpack there is a camera and an iPad. The iPad is locked and can only be opened by him. The things in the backpack are very important to our guest. Whoever finds the backpack and returns it will be paid rupees twenty thousand instantly.”
Upon finding the backpack lying on a roadside, two local sumo drivers Abdul Rashid Sheikh from Surigam and Nazir Ahmad Mir from Lalpora, sensing the need, immediately contacted the journalist with intention to return the lost items with their owner.
After establishing contact with both the parties, the backpack was safely returned to Julian at the Police Station Lalpora in attendance of the Station House Officer Lalpora Altaf Rasheed.
To the sweet surprise of the the tourist Julian, who himself had offered a reward of 20,000 rupees for the safe return of his belongings, the driver duo declined to take the reward. This act of integrity, honesty and kindness garnered the duo widespread admiration from the local community, highlighting the spirit of helpfulness and integrity that defines the region.
“I’m overwhelmed with gratitude after the safe return of my belongings,” Julian said. “I’d like to extend my heartfelt thanks to everyone who helped me during this difficult time. I was confident that if anyone found my backpack, they would ensure its safe return, as Kashmir is known for such noble gestures.”
The tourist also expressed his appreciation for the Lalpora Police Station, a well-known local journalist Jahangir Lolabi, and the individuals who made the successful return possible for him.
