| Refugee leaders meet PM, Union Home Minister | | Demand settlement of refugees, special recruitment for SC/ST/OBC/minorities | |  early times report
New Delhi, Dec 19: Refugee leaders today called on the Prime Mini-ster Manmohan Singh and Union Home Minister Shushil Kumar Shinde and appealed for the one time settlement of the West Pakistan, 1947 refugees, 1971, and 1965 refugees.
The delegation included Refugee leaders and former Minister Manjit Singh, Vice Chairman of Advisory Board for the Welfare and Development of other Backward Classes Kuldeep Verma and Vice chairman of Gujjar Bakerwal Advisory Board Bashir Naaz.
During their meeting with the Prime Minister, the Refugee leader Manjit Singh said that the government should grant adequate crop compensation to the farmers since their lives have become miserable due to the non cultivation of the land or they should move the present fence to the 'zero line', giving relief to the farmers so that they can be able to till their fields. "The compensation and rent for the land coming under ditch-com-bandh constructed by army in 1965 should be enhanced," Singh said.
The former Minister Manjit Singh demanded that the union government should conduct special recruitment drives in Jammu, Kathua, Samba, Rajouri and Poonch districts, while the age, qualification, height relaxation should also be given to the youth belonging to the border areas.
Regarding the refugee's issues, Refugee and senior Congress leader Manjit Singh appealed for the one time settlement of the refugees of 1965, 1971, 1947 and West Pak refugees.
Besides this, the deputation of Congress leaders called on Union Home Minister Shushil Kumar Shinde and the refugee leaders submitted a memorandum to the minister. The memorandum includes demand for the construction of fourth bridge on Chenab River, widening of Jammu to Akhnoor and then to Poonch road, special recruitment for the Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), Other Backward Classes (OBC) and minority communities.
Meanwhile, the deputation leaders Kuldeep Verma and Bashir Naaz demanded construction of rail line from Jammu to Poonch. Verma also demanded the reservation quota of OBC people in Jammu and Kashmir should be increased from its present quota. Other demands in the memorandum include inclusion of Gujjari language in the eighth schedule and also appealed that a Gujjar Regiment should also be raised in the Army.
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