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| Ladakhis 'non-entity' in J&K? | | | Syed Junaid Hashmi
JAMMU, Mar 10: Ongoing budget session for year 2013-14 has re-ignited debate over Ladakhis being non-entity in Jammu and Kashmir. Despite having six representatives in the state legislature including
two ministers (Nawang Rigzin Jora of Congress and NC's Feroz Khan), Ladakh region has innumerable grievances, which often go unheard. Other four legislators, of whom two are MLAs (NC's Qamar Ali Akhoon and Tsetan Namgyal of Congress) and two MLCs (Narboo Gialchan of Congress and Aga Syed Hassan Rizvi of National Conference) do raise issues but due to inability to speak clear 'Urdu' or Hindi, they are unable to raise their issues forcefully.
They raise even extremely serious issues but due to their inability to shout slogans, stage customary walkouts and deliver fiery speeches; their issues die an unsung death. Believe it or not, Urban Development Minister Nawang Rigzin Jora despite being a powerful minister has to walk down to his colleagues with the delegations from Ladakh region to get even trivial issues redressed. The Ladakh Affairs Ministry is not with him.
Much worse is the fact that leaders from Leh-Ladakh region fail to even impress the officer's gallery in both the legislative assembly and the council. If an incident is any indication, Ladakhi legislators
have to produce identity cards in various offices for their identification. How non-seriously government takes Ladakhis gets revealed from the fact that water, one of the primary necessities of
human survival, is also one of the most sought after things in the winters of Ladakh (especially in Leh town).
Sources maintain that Public Health Engineering (PHE) Department stops the supply of pipe-water by the month of October because of freezing of water in the pipes. And throughout the winter, it distributes water through mobile tankers. But because the PHE has got only three
mobile tankers, it becomes extremely difficult to supply water in sufficient quantity throughout the town. Three mobile tankers is what government has given Ladakh to address its water.
They added that to keep one room warm in Ladakhi winters, at least 5 litres of kerosene oil per day is required. But the allocation by the state government through Public Distribution Systems (PDS) is as
little as 10 litres per family per month, which is barely sufficient to keep a family warm for two days. LPG cap is uncalled-for Ladakhis as there is hardly any forest/wood as an alternative source
to meet the daily cooking/household needs. Electricity, which has almost become a basic necessity in the modern world, is still one of the most luxurious items in Ladakhi winters. Households in Leh (even in the urban areas) can hardly afford three hours of electricity in the evening only for lighting purposes. Other amenities that generally come with electric power like AC, cooking/room heaters, geysers, refrigerators, water pumps, etc. are completely unthinkable in Ladakh.
To add to this gloomy scenario, closure of roads implies that Ladakhis have to live throughout winter without fresh vegetables and other essential goods. Ladakhis vehemently ask "Can someone imagine the Valley being cut off from the rest of the country, without fresh vegetables and other items of daily use for even a fortnight, forget for six months?"
Road connectivity is one of the primary indicators of government's seriousness in terms of reaching out to the welfare of citizens in any society or part of the country. The government's apathy, both State
and Centre, towards Ladakh is well indicated by the fact that Ladakh remains cut off from rest of the country for at least six months. If the Jammu-Srinagar highway remains closed for a week, Ladakhis do
not hesitate in saying that the entire administration of the state is brought to a standstill. They assert that government in the state, being responsible for the welfare of all the three regions, should
sometimes also think beyond their vote bank calculations.
"Ladakhis also deserve half of what the people in the Valley and Jammu enjoy. It is, therefore, imperative to know, apart from the extreme cold, what does the winter (and the closure of roads) means to Ladakhis? This is in fact, somehow, equivalent to violation of human
rights that Ladakhis ought to enjoy as citizens of the country," said a leader from Ladakh.
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