*Render help to Auto, minibus operators
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Apr 26: While appreciating the efforts of Government to provide free ration to stranded labourers in J&K hailing from UP, Bihar, Chhatisgarh, Orissa etc, National Democratic Party (NDP) has urged upon the J&K UT administration to provide free ration to the local poor families which are facing starvation due to country wide lockdown.
In a joint press statement, members of the NDP pointed out that many poor families, widows, auto-rikshaw operators, mini-bus drivers/ conductors, way side vendors/ rehari wallas, salesmen/ sales women, domestic helpers etc are unable to feed their families due to country wide lockdown in view of Coronavirus pandemic.
The Government has been providing free ration to the labourers from outside the State while other local poor families and those earn their wages on daily basis to feed their families are facing the brunt of the COVId-19 adversely. While a few local NGOs have been helping some of the families but from the Government side no such help is being provided to these helpless people. In Delhi, Kejriwal Government has accorded Rs 5000 assistance to the auto-rikshaw drivers while in J&K no such efforts have been witnessed from the administration side.
The NDP Executive Committee urged upon the J&K UT Administration to provide some financial help or free ration to these people/ families to minimize their miseries. They said the assistance to the lawyers in J&K was a good step but who will take care of the other needy sections of the society.
The daily wagers in J&K are also facing starvation and they are not being paid their wages since long. Therefore, keeping in view the over all situation and showing kind heart towards these people, the J&K administration must take sympathetic view and come out for the help of these deprived sections of the society. The signatories to the statement included- NK Atri, JG Sharma, Vijay Anand, R K Sharma, Subhash Chander, Surinder Singh and Rajeev Gupta.