Srinagar, Feb. 1 -- In the shadow of the Pir Panjal, where apple blossoms paint the valleys white every spring, a quiet battle is unfolding in south Kashmir. Farmers in Shopian and Pulwama districts that together form the beating heart of India's apple economy are standing guard over their orchards, arms wrapped around ancient trees, placards in hand, voices raised not in anger but in desperate plea. The proposed 27-kilometer railway line from Kakapora (near Awantipora) to Kunsoo in Shopian has sparked protests that echoes the spirit of the old Chipko movement where people hugging the very roots that sustained them, refusing to let survey poles and yellow markers spell the end of their way of life. They feel that real bottleneck does not ...