Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Apr 12: Expressing the solidarity with the Government and whole society in its fight against COVID-19, the leaders of Jammu Kashmir Tribal United Forum (JKTUF), a frontal organization working for the affairs of Gujjar and Bakerwal Tribes have demanded an emergency relief of Rs. 7000 per month to each nomadic and BPL household of Gujjar & Bakerwal during the period of lockdown.
While demanding adequate compensation and relief for the losses, the TUF leaders said nomadic and below poverty line Gujjar families of Jammu & Kashmir suffered due to no work and no sale of the milk under lockdown.
Roshan Din Choudhary, chief of Forum, said that like other informal labour force, agricultural workers, small and marginal farmers, about five lakhs nomadic Gujjars and Bakerwals of JK UT have been badly affected by the lockdown due to COVID-19, are yet to receive due attention of the authorities. “The nomads coming from border areas of R.S.Pura, Bishnah, Arnia, Ramgarh, Samba, Hiranagar and Kathua couldn’t sell the milk as well as the milk products during lockdown which not only caused serious problem of their livelihood but they could also not provide the fodder to their cattle,” he said and added that the milk being an essential item is required by every body, thus during lockdown, a mechanism of selling the milk should be put in place which on one side would cater to the needs of nomads (the milk sellers) and on the other side would meet the requirement of the general public.
Nasir Bajjar, general secretary of TUF said the during this lockdown, the nomadic Gujjar & Bakerwal and BPL families have suffered on three accounts, one they couldn’t sell the milk, second their cattle are without fodders and third the BPL families got deprived of their daily earning. He appealed the concerned authorities to pay heed to the plight of these affected families without any further delay.
Nighat Shafeeq, another leader of TUF appealed the authorities to evacuate Gujjar labours from almost all parts of JK Union Territory who are stranded in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Delhi.
Shafeeq said the situation is very grim when huge chunk of Gujjar population is also locked in the upper reaches due to lockdown and have no food to eat and they are at verge of starvation and very unfortunate is that the administration at various places have also no information about this.
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