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| Media is the watchdog, it can't be selective & biased | | Discrimination: Jammu VS Kashmir | | Neha
EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, July 6: Media is the watchdog. Its fundamental duty is to report fairly with suitable and appropriate comments. It is also the duty of the media to present an accurate picture of facts so that the people know the whole truth. It just can't take sides. It would be a black day if the media, instead of reporting fairly and fearlessly, decides to take sides and adopts a selective and biased approach to the issues facing the people.
It is indeed unfortunate that a section of the Kashmir-based print media has unleashed a misinformation campaign to create an impression that while Kashmir is being discriminated against, Jammu province is being given preferential treatment. One of the stories in a leading English language daily based on the report submitted by the State Finance Commission (SFC) last year has sought to make the people believe that Kashmir has been facing "educational deprivation."
The story, among other things, reads like this: "In its report submitted to the state government last November, the Commission has noticed that in last two decades, educational institutions have declined in the Valley, despite need for more schooling due to low literacy level. The general and the female literacy continues to be on lower side in Kashmir compared to Jammu and Ladakh despite the number of educational institutions going up to 19735 and enrolment (I-XII standard) to 20.73 lakh as per the data compiled in 2007, highlights the report…Schools in Jammu region have almost doubled from 4953 in 1980 to 8285 (52 percent) in 2007, the corresponding growth in Kashmir has been far less from 4901 to 6844 (43 percent), and 411 to 729 (4.30 percent) in thinly populated Ladakh region. In Kashmir, 3.2 percent villages have education facility (high/higher secondary schools) at village level, while the percentage is 11.1 in Jammu. Less than 50 percent (41.90 percent) villages in Kashmir have primary and secondary education facility (I-XII standard) available at village level. In Jammu region the percentage is 46."
Agreed. The SFC did say that. There is no need to contest whatever the SFC said. In fact, it is the duty of the state government to take cognizance of the report and undertake measures calculated to meet all the educational needs of the people of Kashmir Valley. Education is an elixer to life and education is the fundamental right of the citizens. There is no dispute on this issue. The problem is with the approach of those in the media who make wrong cpomparisons or suppress hard facts. It would have been better had this section of print media reflected on all the spheres, and not just on education. Such an approach would have set the record straight and clinched the whole issue of discrimination with Kashmir or Jammu.
It needs to be noted that when the SFC submitted its report to the government, two members of the commission - Swami Raj Sharma from Jammu and Sonam Dawa from Ladakh -- had also submitted a dissenting note, along with the report. Remember, the findings of Sharma and Dawa have not been incorporated in the final report of the SFC. The report was practically finalized by chairman of the commission Mahmood-ur-Rehman and a Kashmiri member Nissar Ali. Sharma had written a letter to this effect to the Chief Minister and demanded the creation of three autonomous regional planning boards, one each for Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh, saying this was the only alternative available to address the issues facing the people of Jammu province.
Sharma and Dawa had not only bemoaned the non-inclusion of their findings in the final report that had since been submitted, but also made public their findings. According to Sharma and Dawa, Jammu province received far less funds as compared to Kashmir in as many as nine sectors -- Agriculture and Allied Departments, Health and Medical Education, Irrigation, Flood Control and PHE, Rural Development and Allied Departments and Roads and Buildings -- since 1992.
Quoting the figures contained in the Annual Plan Document 2008-09 published by the Planning Department vis-à-vis total allotments and expenditure for the two regions of the State-Jammu and Kashmir -- covering district and State Sector plans for the 8th, 9th, 10th and 11th Five Year Plan periods, Sharma and Dawa had said that "barring Elementary Education sector, far less allocation was made to the Jammu region as compared to Kashmir region In the 8th Five Year Plan (1992-97) period under the Agriculture and Allied Sectors." Kashmir region was allotted Rs 12347.00 lakh, while Jammu region Rs 10007.00 lakh (2340.00 lakh less as compared to Kashmir region.) In the 9th Five Year Plan period (1997-2002), Kashmir region was given Rs 23150.00 lakh and Jammu Rs 17757 lakh" (Rs 5393 lakh less as compared to Valley.)
Likewise, in the 10th Five Year Plan (2002-2007), Kashmir was allocated Rs 36070 lakh and Jammu Rs 33885 lakh (less allocation of Rs 2185 lakh as compared to Kashmir). Kashmir was allocated Rs 46043 lakh and Jammu Rs 42338 lakh to Jammu during the 11th Five Year Plan period (2007-2012). In other words, Jammu got Rs 3705 lakh less as compared to Kashmir.
The story of in the Agriculture and Allied Sectors was no different. Jammu province was allocated a total of Rs 13623 lakh less as compared to Kashmir since 1992, notwithstanding the fact that the irrigated area of Jammu region was 1,82,854 hectares as compared to 1,82,000 hectares of Kashmir. "In terms of much more agriculture land located in Jammu region, allocating far less funds in this sector to Jammu seems arbitrary and discriminatory", they had said.
Similarly, as for the Roads and Buildings Sector, Kashmir was given Rs 24124 lakh and Jammu province Rs 16455 lakh (Rs 7669 lakh less as compared to Valley) in 8th Five Year Plan. During the 9th Five Year Plan, Jammu region was allotted Rs 17031 lakh less as compared to Kashmir region. In 10th Five Year Plan, Kashmir was allocated Rs 15208 lakh more as compared to Jammu province. Jammu province was given Rs 39908 lakh less since 1992 despite the fact that the number of villages in Jammu province, which were not connected with roads, was 1401 villages.
It is important to note that the number of villages in the Kashmir Valley that were not connected with roads till then was only 314 villages. In other words, the Jammu province had 1015 villages more as compared to Kashmir that were still to be connected with roads. As far as Ladakh was concerned, the number of such towns and villages was 21. |
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