Battle at the Top of the World.

• Author: Bearak, Barry

INDIA AND PAKISTAN CLASH OVER A MOUNTAIN PARADISE, TAKING THEIR 50-YEAR-OLD CONFLICT TO NEW EXTREMES

The Valley of Kashmir in northern India, where long green valleys cut through some of the world's tallest mountain peaks, has long been famed for lotus blossoms floating in crystal blue lakes and dazzling yellow mustard fields. For centuries, its name was equated with stunning beauty and serenity.

But today, there is trouble in paradise. The summer capital of Srinagar is dotted with sandbag bunkers. Guntoting soldiers train their rifles on passersby. And as India and Pakistan fight over this land, a carnival of killing routinely mocks the region's legendary tranquillity--people are blown apart, ambushed, caught in crossfire, or snatched and never seen again.

"If only we could turn back the clock," laments Irfan Maqsood, a 21-year-old Srinagar student. "The fighting goes on and on, and for what?"

For half a century, largely Hindu India and mostly Muslim Pakistan have made Kashmir the object of a rivalry as venomous as any in the world. During the past decade alone, the fighting has claimed at least 24,000 lives by India's official count, and perhaps as many as 70,000. For years, grenade and mortar attacks in Kashmir barely made world news reports But two years ago, India and Pakistan both successfully tested nuclear bombs. Today, a sudden escalation of hostilities could have apocalyptic consequences. Together, the two nations have more than 1.1 billion people, about one sixth of the world's population.

Recent events have only increased pressures. In early October, a coalition led by a Hindu nationalist party that takes a hard line on Pakistan won control of India's government for the second time. A week later, Pakistan's prime minister was deposed in a military coup. In December, five guerrillas hijacked an Indian jetliner, forcing India to free three militants who oppose India's presence in Kashmir. Next month, President Clinton plans to visit the region in hopes of easing tensions. But he will be trying to undo a cycle of violence that has deep roots.

India and Pakistan have been enemies since they were both carved out of British India in 1947. Rioting broke out even before independence day, with Muslims, Hindus, and Sikhs involved in killing rampages that would take hundreds of thousands of lives. The two nations have since fought three all-out wars.

CAUGHT IN THE MIDDLE

Kashmir, parts of which are controlled by India, Pakistan, and China...