04 Op--20100616    Economic Resolution- Plight Of Displaced Kashmiri Pandits-by ASKPC

Martand

Having been forced to flee the valley of Kashmir to save their life and honour from fundamentalists religions zealots and terrorists trained and armed by Pakistan, the peace loving and patriotic community of Kashmiri Pandits fled to other parts of the state and country to take shelter and refuge. But, little did they know that unkind and callous administration would also be equally responsible for adding to their miseries and sufferings in their exile. The displaced KP community has been victim of utter neglect and apathy displayed by the government for more than two decades. As a result, the community is steadily sliding backwards into wretchedness and oblivion and certain doom

For the Kashmiri Pandits, the government has refused or failed to defend and ensure their basic Human Rights encompassed not only in the universal Declaration of Human Rights but more importantly enshrined in the country's constitution and above all human conscience. After the exodus their trauma has only changed its character from being the result of death and terror in the valley to an all consuming torment of living as neglected refugees and cast away human items.

The raisen d'etre of a government is to protect its citizens and punish those who endanger the life, liberty and well-being of the citizens irrespective of caste, creed or community. In the case of Kashmiri Pandits community, the Government has totally failed to do this. It was thus the legal and moral obligation of the Government to rehabilitate the displaced KP Community.

In view of the progressively deteriorating conditions in Kashmir and the absence of a clear cut policy to contain and stem terrorism and fundamentalism in the valley, the return of Displaced Kashmiri Pandits to their homes in the valley in the near future seems to be almost impossible. The community cannot be left to languish in refugee camps and wither away in the agony of exile. The displaced Kashmiri Pandits being honourable citizens of India and at present suffering for their unquestionable patriotism, have a right to live in dignity even in exile, have a right to lead a fruitful life even when away from their home and have the right to invoke constitutional guarantees for their welfare and progress. It was for this reason that ASKPC conventions of 1990 & 1992 asked for Quasi Permanent Settlement for displaced Kashmiri Pandits till the time the conditions in the valley became conducive for their returns to the land of their birth. Unfortunately nothing tangible and concrete has been done to rehabilitate them meaning fully.

Instead of empowering and rehabilitating Displaced Kashmiri Pandit Community with schemes and skills to be able to overcome the trauma of displacement due to terror, the policies and actions of the governments all these years have made us hangers-on of politicians by doting out meagre reliefs. It is a fact that prior to displacement of Kashmir Hindus from the valley, the no. of employees in public sector / Govt. sector was 24000 and this no. has dwindled due to retirement/ premature deaths of employees to 2000. Moreover there has not been any effort, be it from the central or state government to provide succour to the community at a time when they have lost their hearths and home and are fighting the onslaught of displacement that befell on these people for none of their fault. It has. been seen that whenever a calamity, be it natural or manmade falls in any country of the world, the government of the day works day in and day out to provide succour to the victims and try to ameliorate their lot by taking extra care. Here in the case of Kashmir Pandits, it took government twenty long years to provide the employment package, with riders and that too half heartedly when the central government has promised for 6000 jobs, advertisement has only been carried out for some 2700 posts. Moreover nothing concrete has come out from the government regarding the people who were dependant on agriculture/ business and the over aged youth. This being the one side of the coin. On the other side, the government leaves no stone unturned when it comes to providing relief to the perpetators of terrorism. They adopt healing touch policy, provide doles to the next of kin of the perpetators of violence and the latest being the rehabilitation policy for the people who crossed line of control for receiving arms training, with the intent of waging war on the Indian nation. Also on one hand the government of its own provides Rs. 750/- per month to the children of the slain militants, but when it comes to enhancing relief of the displaced people, the demand meets cold shoulder. We fail to understand, whether the priority for the government should be to rehabilitate the nationalists who have suffered for none of their faults or the anti-nationals who have wreaked havoc and made life miserable for the ordinary citizens of the state. It may be placed on record that we are not against rehabilitation of any sufferer of militancy, but we negate the approach and adaptation of different yard sticks by the government towards the Kashmiri Pandit displaced community. The Government should have shown

its magnanimity by being liberal in extending help to the Kashmiri Pandit community, so that they could overcome their sufferings and soothe their wounds which have inflicted on their psyche by the militancy. It is in this backdrop that All State Kashmiri Pandit Conference at Jammu on resolves that the state as well as central Government should be pressed to fulfil the natural justice caused by way of displacement as under:

Government should meet the demands of National Justices by ameliorating suffer ing of the displaced community.

1. The opportunities of livelihood may be created on the basis of increased strength of unemployed youths, agriculturists and business community with the pas sage of time from the date of displacement to till date irrespective of the commitment of 6000 jobs and a special drive to fill up the backlog of due share of government jobs to Kashmiri Pandits should be initiated on priority.
2. Compensation to agriculturists, traders and industrialists for their movable as well as immovable property and the like at appropriate price index.
3. Age relaxation of seven years in seeking government employment to those youths who have crossed eligibility age after displacement.
4. Interest free loans to the commu nity youth, to start their business ventures.
5. One time grant of Rs. 200 lacs to those youth who have attained the age of 40 years and above.
6. Special employment drive of Kashmiri Pandit youths in Central Govt of fices/ Public sector undertakings etc.
7. Appointment of displaced students who have passed their degrees from P.T.U and other universities through study centres.
8. Enhancement of relief to Rs. 10,000/- per family per month seeing the present inflationary market.

All these years of exile the displaced KPs have been promised lolly pops of returning with dignity, honour and respect. Repeatedly we have been offered half backed packages with much hype, the latest slew of sops under the label of rehabilitation package announced by the Prime Minister falls in the same class. In fact, this is nothing but a scheme of refoulment to push back displaced KPs into the jaws of death. Local political considerations seema to have compelled this.

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Courtesy: The Martand- The Official organ of All State Kashmiri Pandit Conference: 16th June, 2010