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| NC has darkened JK: PDP | | Mehbooba Leads demonstration against power crisis | | EARLY TIMES REPORT
Srinagar, Jan 4: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) today held demonstrations in Srinagar and Jammu to protest the deteriorating quality of life under the present coalition government, electricity crisis, sell out of water and power resources and continued official repression.
A large number of workers carrying placards joined the demonstration and chanted slogans. The PDP president, Mahbooba Mufti led the demonstration in Srinagar. Some protesters carried laltains (kerosene lamps) to symbolize complete breakdown of power supply in the state, especially the Kashmir valley. This was also to protest the non availability of cooking gas, kerosene and other essential commodities.
The demonstrators demanded return of the power generation projects from the NHPC that had been gifted by the National Conference from time to time to the central government in order to secure its rule.
Party general secretary Mohammad Dilawar Mir, MLAs Ab Rehman Veeri, Mohammad Khalil Bandh and Mohammed Rafi Mir and other senior leaders including District Presidents Qazi Moahmmed Afzal, Mohd Ashraf Mir, Saifudin Bhat and Nazir Ahmed Laway and Asiea Naqash, General Secretaries of Youth wing Er Nazir Yatoo and Showkat Gayoor and all zonal presidents participated in the demonstration.
In her brief address to the workers Mehbooba lamented the failure of the state government on all fronts that had added only miseries to people and reversed all gains the state had made on political and development fronts. She said her party had deliberately adopted a low profile over the past three months in the hope that the state government would have learnt some lessons from its debacle on all fronts that had resulted in unprecedented alienation and loss of precious 112 lives.
She said the party had also been watching the situation in the light of the 8 point agenda announced by the union government as a guide to the state and had hoped some relief would be provided to common man. "But the so called agenda proved yet another cruel joke that was implemented only in breach" she said adding instead of releasing the youth and political detainees more and more were being arrested. The youth were now hounded both in and outside the state, in the process demonizing every Kashmiri as a stone pelter she said saying this had further enlarged the gulf between the state and rest of country.
Mahbooba said the power crisis represented a colossal failure of the government that had affected all sections of society. "We believe power is a fundamental right of the people especially in extreme climatic conditions as life these days is completely dependant on electricity and had ensured regular supply during the previous coalition" she said pointing out it was for the first time in state's history that a decent level of supply had been ensured. She said it seemed spreading darkness is the only policy that the NC pursues with effect otherwise it was inconceivable as to what happened to the system in just one year. She pointed out that over the past two years over 500 megawatts had been added to the state generation system but immediately after the NC led coalition assumed office they started load shedding and have now revived the pre 2002 scenario.
The PDP president said with the political problems of the state the NC was directly responsible for bartering away the state resources to the NHPC which was making money at the cost of state resources while we are suffering in darkness. She said while Dr Farooq Abdullah handed over seven most feasible power projects to centre in 2000, Omar Abdullah continued the process by entering another agreement with NHPC to give them majority stakes in three more projects. This she said had served the most lethal blow to state's economic prospects and reduced us to beggars who seem to be destined to live in darkness. "But PDP with the support of people would intensify its campaign for renegotiating the terms of agreement with NHPC which at present gives a paltry 12 percent royalty to the state" she declared appealing people to support this demand proactively for the sake of our coming generations.
Mahbooba said while on the one hand power had completely disappeared, with some areas getting a daily supply of just one hour, cooking gas and kerosene had gone scarce. Same was the case with other essentials like water and food items. The government she said was hand in glove with hoarders and profiteers who were looting the common man. Even the Public distribution system, she said had almost completely collapsed as its stocks were being pilfered and sold in black market. |
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