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| Opening of new Degree Colleges evoke mixed reaction | | ‘Protest demonstrations at various places in Kashmir’ | | Early Times Reporter
Jammu | Dec 30
“While opening of 18 new degree colleges across the State is a welcome step, yet grave injustice has been done to the people of various areas like Surankote, Mahore, Gool who have been ignored despite their being genuine demands for opening of Degree Colleges.” This was stated by senior PDP leaders in a joint statement issued here today after meeting various delegations pouring into the PDP’s regional office from these areas.
In the joint statement issued here today by vice-president Ved Mahajan, General Secretary Murtaza Khan and Party’s secretary Syed Asgahr Ali, it has been pointed out that the Government has failed to accord due consideration to the genuineness of demands for opening of colleges at various places besides the above referred locations. “A college has been ordered to be opened at Darmari which is at a distance of 50 Km from Reasi where a degree college already exists while Mahore Tehsil comprising 1326 sq. km and a population of over 1.5 lakh souls has been ignored. Reliable sources also reveal that there was no consensus over opening of the said degree college as during the last Cabinet Meeting where this decision was taken, a group of Ministers insisted that Mahore was more appropriate place as compared to Darmadi and the Chief Minister had deferred the issue with an assurance to decide the issue later and open the college at a centrally located place but when orders were issued, to the surprise of many members of the Cabinet, the decision was reversed.”
The statement added that “similarly a commitment was made by the Chief Minister for opening of University campus at Surankote and the site was also selected but few weeks before the Poonch-Havli Bye-elections, the campus was shifted from Surankote to Dingla. There has been a long pending and genuine demand of the people of Surankote for a degree college for women as there exists no such college in Poonch district. “Grave injustice has been done to these areas and we urge the CM to reconsider opening of degree college at Surankote, Mahore and Gool.
Cabinet decision: Goof for coalition government
Reports reaching from Srinagar indicate that protests rocked many areas of South and Central Kashmir on the issue of opening new colleges in the state.
The protestors took to streets at various places including Quazigund, Narbal, Nagam, Chadoora and Charier-e-Sharief accusing the coalition government of step motherly treatment.
Chanting slogans against local MLA, the protestors accused the government of ignoring the main part of his constituency and also blocked Srinagar-Jammu National Highway for half an hour which was however cleared by the police and security forces deployed in the area.
"Government has to justify as what criteria was adopted at the time when it short-listed the areas for opening of degree colleges", a local leader and social worker Rafiq Ahmad Khan said adding that this seems to be a political Hathkanda of the alliance partners who want to divert the attention of unemployed youth from the promises made by the PDP-Congress during the last assembly elections.
The protesting people later went to Y K Pora where they pelted stones towards some government buildings and vehicles.
Similar protests were reported from Narbal, Nagam, Chadoora and Charier-e- Sharief of district Budgam where people took to streets demanding separate degree colleges for their respective areas. |
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