Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, July 7: Former Union Minister and MLA Prof Chaman Lal Gupta urged upon the Election Commission and the Governor of Jammu and Kashmir to have a thorough look in the figures of Census and that of the electoral rolls which are of great importance on many accounts.
Indicting the Government authorities for contradictory and misleading figures on various accounts in Jammu and Kashmir, Gupta has stressed the need for setting the record in order as the statistics play a vital role in the formation of developmental schemes and allotment of funds.
In a statement issued here Prof Gupta has pointed out that in the report of Union Home Ministry as also some of the States have put the population growth rate of J&K quite lower than other parts of the country, but the census figures presented a different story in light of which the population of the State especially that of the Valley is growing at much lighter rate than the national average.
Gupta further pointed out that in the latest report of the Home Ministry, the birth rate of J&K per thousand in an year has been listed 18.3, death rate 5.7 and normal growth rate 12.6 against the national average of 21.2, 7.2 and 14.9 respectively, however, in contrary the population growth rate of J&K in the census of 2011 has been listed much higher than the national average of 21.
“After the latest census, the population of the State which was earlier less than one percent of the country, has now gone up by one percent. Certain areas of the State especially, Kashmir Valley, particularly those of the border districts of Kupwara and Baramulla, have marked an increase of about three times in past three decades, which is unbelievable”, the statement added.
Gupta said that this abnormal growth in militancy affected areas raises many questions, especially when there has been large scale migration of the minorities and other nationalists including about 3000 Muslim families registered in Jammu.
Prof Gupta further questioned the validity of the census figures by pointing out that the geographical area as also the number of households of Jammu is quite higher than that of the Valley.
Charging certain elements in the Government itself tinkering with the figures, Gupta pointed out that in 2002 Assembly Elections Jammu was having about 3 lakh more voters that that of the Valley, adding that past few years witnessed drastic deletion of Jammu voters and an increase of Kashmir voters.
Challenging the fairness of the electoral rolls, he pointed out that voters have been registered much higher than the census figures and in some areas the electorate is less than fifty percent of the Census figures.
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