Early Times Report
Jammu, Dec 8: With government, soon after the creation of the union territory, is laying emphasis upon the rehabilitation of the west Pak refuges in Jammu and Kashmir, there are questions being raised over the thousands of crores of central grants that weren't spent by the erstwhile state regime in the past.
As per the official sources, the Jammu and Kashmir administration is seeking details of the thousands of crores of central funds that were earlier given to successive Jammu and Kashmir governments for ensuring better facilities the refugees hailing from west Pakistan and taking shelter in Jammu and Kashmir.
Recently, under the chairmanship of Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Girish Chandra Murmu, a detailed discussion was held on relief and rehabilitation benefits extended to Kashmiri migrants, persons displaced in 1947, 1965 and 1971 and refugees from West Pakistan. Furthermore, said official sources, there were questions raised over why the successive regimes in the erstwhile state have failed to utilize the funds which were earlier approved by the central government for the upliftment of these refugees. The documents reveal that under the Prime Minister's Special Package, Rs 2000 crore were sanctioned by the Government of India for the rehabilitation and one time settlement of 36384 families from PoK.
As per the documents, out of these sanctioned Rs 2000 crores, not even a single rupee was spent by the erstwhile state regime- putting a lid over the murky system in vogue and step- motherly treatment being given to the already ill-fated people.
These PoK based refugees were displaced from their houses and forced to take shelter in Jammu 70 years ago. And what is more unfortunate and worrisome is that their plight failed has so far failed out rightly to move the world organisations, the Centre and state governments.
There have been already reports about how the three generations of people displaced from PoK were faced with poverty, discrimination and apathy and forced to live in 39 filthy camps.
Patiently, the Government of India appointed an Interlocutor (Dineshwar Sharma) to get the views of various sections of the society in November last year. he has been visiting Kashmir Valley and listening to the people and their woes. What has raised eye brows is that Sharma has he not visited for a single time the people displaced from PoK yet.
Thousands of refugees, who were forced to leave the areas of Kashmir occupied by Pakistan in 1947, were provided land in different parts of the Jammu region in 1960s but they did not get benefits of different government housing schemes or access to bank loans.
This is considered by many a gruesome act that when refugee rights are being raised everywhere, the Jammu and Kashmir government didn't bother to address the issues and hardships being faced by more than thirty six thousand families who took shelter in Jammu after facing prosecution in PAK. |
