Gloves Drying Over Heater in Jammu Evening

Street lamps cast a warm, yellow glow against the deepening blue of early summer twilight along barricaded routes in Jammu. A pair of thick, gray rubber gloves hangs from the metal grate of a portable heater, their surfaces still wet with sleet. The heater sits on the asphalt, surrounded by concrete barriers that line the road. In the distance, faint outlines of protest signs and vehicles fade into the evening haze. The gloves dangle slightly, their texture softened by the heat radiating from the unit. Shadows stretch long across the pavement, marking the end of a long day of duty under the clear, cooling sky. The metal grate of the heater glows faintly orange where the flames lick upward.