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| Do Pandit widows deserve enhanced financial help? | | | Early Times Report
Jammu, July 7 : The first task that has not been dealt by the successive Governments has been left to Governor, N.N. Vohra. He knows the pulse of the people who have been affected by the 27-year old Pakistan sponsored militancy. In fact the plight of the widows has remained untouched when there are on Government record over 7500 widows whose husbands have been killed by militants.
It is yet not known whether some of the Kashmiri Pandit families who have lost their bread earners would also be benefitted by Vohra's decision. Governor, Vohra has approved revision of the monthly pension of militancy victim widows from Rs 750 to Rs 1000.The order would benefit 7500 widows, involving an additional expenditure of Rs 3 crores, which Finance Department has been directed to bear as an additional expenditure.
No doubt Vohra has been staying in the Raj Bhawan in Srinagar and Jammu,where he enjoys full facilities,he does not seem to have lost touch with those affected by militancy.He seems to have realized that it may be difficult for a widow to run her house on a paltry Rs 750.
Well by enhancing the monthly pension from Rs.750 to Rs.1,000 cannot be termed as a gift from the heaven because of the rising prices of essential commodities. Vohra needs to carry out a fresh exercise on the number of victims of militancy related violence. And if the Governor orders the officials to undertake a fresh survey on the number of militancy related victims the survey would reveal more than one can digest.Militancy related victims could run into several thousand families having lost their sons, their husbands, their grand children and daughters.
Do these affected by militancy deserve some financial relief? Yes,they do deserve provided the Government has resources to bear the cost. And it would be proper for the state Government, rather the Governor, to approach the centre for additional financial help which would be granted to all those affected by militancy.
If Vohra has increased pension of widows of militancy what about those who were killed during clashes between security forces and protesters? Do those women whose husbands fell to the bullets of security forces deserve pensionary benefits? And if about 200 Pandits have been killed by militants do their women deserve pensionary benefits ? Yes they do have a right because all those killed by militants were not serving in any Government department which could have allowed their widows to secure pension from the Government Departments. And if Vohra finds that those pundits killed by militants,and wer e not in Government service, a fresh survey need to be carried out though the task is difficult because those who survived have been scattered all over India. And the Resident Commissioners could help the Government in preparing a list of those who deserve, among Pandits, financial support for their survival. And for this survey and financial aid for meeting Pandits' demand need the help from the central Government. And the Governor could raise funds by dissolving the Assembly which could not allow legislators to draw perks. |
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