Srinagar, Sept. 4 -- It was a rainy afternoon in Upper Bazar, Qazigund. The kind of rain that does not just fall but lingers, soaking everything with a quiet persistence. A group of us had taken shelter in a small hotel, its steaming cups of kehwa and chai offering comfort against the damp chill. Rainwater pattered rhythmically on the tin roof as we sat huddled around tables. Some of us talked about the rain; others had their eyes glued to mobile screens, scanning news updates about rising water levels in the Jhelum and the flood situation unfolding in Jammu.

The conversation was animated, if not anxious. People spoke about riverbanks swelling, low-lying areas already inundated, and the troubling memories of previous floods-especially th...