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| Mehbooba for easing restrictions on cross-LoC movement | | |
Teethwal, May 29:
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) President, Ms Mehbooba Mufti has called for easing restrictions on the cross-LoC movement of people to make this Confidence Building Measure (CBM) fruitful. "The knotty procedural delay in the issue of permissions for cross-LoC movement of the divided families has almost rendered the confidence building process immaterial and symbolic," she said.
Addressing people at the "Teethwal-Point" one of the crossing points for the divided families on LoC in Tanghdar sector, Ms Mufti said she is shocked and astonished to learn that, since the opening of this point, only one person has been able to cross over to meet his relatives in other part of Kashmir. "It is a cruel joke with these hapless people in the name of CBMs," she lamented.
Quoting locals, Ms Mufti said while hundreds of persons from the divided families have applied for permission to cross the LoC to meet their near and dear ones, the callous procedural formalities have denied them the opportunity to avail of the facility. She said the Governments on both the sides must ensure hassle-free movement of the people to make the process fruitful. She said the opening of the meeting point at Teethwal had generated lot of hope and optimism among the locals that the area would once again boom with activity, but their hopes have been dashed to the ground by the hassles involved in the movement of the people.
Ms Mufti said instead of relaxing the restrictions on the movement of people near and across the LoC after the opening of the meeting point, the authorities here have reportedly enforced fresh curbs completely confining the movement of the residents. "Such restrictive measures are absolutely unwarranted and both the Governments must address the issue as it is a humanitarian problem," she said and added that not only of people the two Governments must now also allow free movement of goods to make the confidence building process result-oriented.
Ms Mufti said the Indo-Pak bonhomie would be inconsequential unless the people of Jammu & Kashmir, who are the worst victims of their hostility, benefit from the same. "If we are not able the change the paranoiac and glacial mindset of the people at the helm of affairs, I don't thin the process is going to help the people of the State anyway," she said.
Responding to the demands of the locals, Ms Mufti said the Government must make address the developmental needs of the people in the border areas and provide them with all the communication facilities including roads and telephones. She called for installation of mobile telephone towers in such remote areas of the State which are still unconnected with the rest of the world. She also stressed the need for speeding up the rehabilitation of the earthquake victims, most of whom are still living in highly inhospitable conditions.
PDP leaders Nizam-ud-Din Bhat, Basharat Bukhari and Peerzada Mansoor Hussain also addressed the meeting.
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