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| As Tosha Maidan hits headlines, no eyebrows raise for Jammu | | Important artery, kanals of JU land under Army's occupation | | Abodh Sharma
Jammu, Nov 13: Sensitivity and eagerness exhibited by Kashmir centric Governments on issues concerning valley invariably disappear in thin air when it comes to Jammu.
Army firing range in Tosha Maidan in Budgam is the most recent case in point. While Government constituted a committee to look into the demand of the people to shift the decades old firing range which had been legally leased out to the Army, The issue rocked in both the Houses of Parliament as well. In the backdrop, not just the Government, but the social and political organizations and the civil administration of Jammu has remained completely inert and indifferent to crucial encroachments by Army in Jammu city which have affected lives of its citizens.
Army has completely severed an important artery of the city in the garb of security and occupied tens of kanals of land belonging to Jammu University. Road connecting Ware House at Bikram Chowk to Cantonment at Satwari Chowk has been cut off for civilian movement for unknown reasons for decades now. "People of Jammu are staunch nationalists and they love and respect their Army, but that does not mean that Army can totally usurp an important city road" said Avdhesh Raina, a resident of Satwari. "The under-construction flyover from Bikram Chowk to Satwari would not have been required if administration had restored this important link from illegal occupation of the Army" he added.
Jammu University, the premier institute of higher education in the entire region suffers as hundreds of kanals of their land continues to be occupied by the Army and many an extension plans of the University had to be shelved due to paucity of land. Army's transit camp and residence of a brigade commander are situated in the university land illegally encroached by the Army. It was strange that when son of the soil, General NC Vij was the Chief of Army staff and another son of the soil, Prof. Chaman Lal Gupta was the Union Minister of State for defence, the university administration had aggressively pursued its case for revocation of its land from Army occupation, but despite so many suitable permutations, Army refused to oblige. "Army was very straight forward in exerting that they needed that land. They, however, agreed to vacate if they were given an alternate land of equal market value, which was estimated at Rs 400 crores at that point of time" said a senior university officer, who did not want to be quoted. However, it seems ridiculous why Army should demand an alternate land of 'same commercial value' said a senior University officer.
Sources divulge that a land was identified in Sunjwan to be allotted to the Army as an alternate, but Dr. Farooq Abdullah did not agree as he planned to develop residential colonies in Sunjwan area and the proposal had to be shelved.
Meanwhile, Tosha Maidan has suddenly hit headlines, not an eyebrow has risen for Jammu's cause. |
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