JAMMU,Nov 21:The BJP led NDA government has betrayed and cheated the refugees of 1947, 1965 & 1971 from POK and those from West Pakistan in the recent package announced by the Prime Minister Shri Narinder Modi for the state.
The package of one time settlement of refugees of 1947, 1965 and 1971 comprising financial assistance/ex-gratia relief of Rs 25 lakhs per family amounting to over 9000 crore alongwith several other concessions including reservation to their wards was recommended by the previous Congress-NC coalition government to the centre, after hot persuit by the Congress and various organization of refugees.
The BJP which promised to ensure one time settlement of refugees for POK including from Chhamb area, Mirpur, Poonch and Muzaffarabad districts under illegal occupation of Pak besides promising citizenship to West Pakistan refugees before the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, has betrayed them after assuming power both at the centre and sharing the same in the state. He said that soon after coming to power the Modi government had returned the package to the state government without any reason, adding insult to their injuries.
In a statement Chief Spokesman JKPCC Mr. Ravinder Sharma said that package of ex-gratia recommended by the Congress-NC government for the POK refugee families alone was to the extent of over 9000 crores but the present centre government failed to grant the same in the recent package of Rs. 80,000 crores, which is more or less a packaging exercise of summing up the figures of revised costs ongoing and approved projects and the next five years share of the state, as the Modi government has gained expertise in packaging, he added.
The package mentioned that Rs. 2000 crore only has been earmarked under the component comprising Kashmiri migrants, construction of their houses, expenses on the IRP Bn comprising 4000 personnel and refugees. However the break up of Rs. 2000 crores provided that Rs. 1080 crore has been kept for the provision of jobs for KPs besides Rs. 920 crores on the purchase of land and construction of accommodation for them.
Regarding the grant of relief to the Jammu migrants at par with their counterparts of Kashmir valley, he said that all those who are eligible to be covered in this category have not been included as only about one thousand families have been shown as against that claims of over two thousand such eligible families already admitted by the government before the Hon’ble Court. He demanded extending the benefit to all such eligible families in this regard and full compliance of court orders.
Stating that the prices of all commodities have almost doubled since the recommendation of the package by the previous state government to the centre, Mr. Sharma demanded that the one time settlement of refugees of 1947, 1965 and 1971 alongwith other recommendations for reservations to wards of such refugees in the professional courses and services should be immediately sanctioned, if the centre and state government are sincere to the cause of these refugees.
He further said that the roadmap to facilitate the return & rehabilitation of Kashmiri migrants was prepared by the Congress led UPA government in consultation with the state government whereby a package of Rs. 1618.40 crore were sanctioned in the year 2008 where under provision of 3000 jobs with central funding was made, out of which 1963 jobs have already been provided and the process of the remaining is under way. Besides 469 transit accommodations constructed in the Kashmir valley have already been provided to the migrant employees. He said that the present package for the Kashmiri migrants is an extension of the same package initiated by the then UPA government.
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