CM says will call IB/LoC MLAs’ meet after session
*Govt to ask DCs to expedite disbursement
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Mar 24: Three BJP MLAs from border areas including Devender Kumar Manyal (Ramgarh), Surjit Singh Slathia (Samba) and Vijay Kumar Sharma (Hiranagar) voiced concern in the Assembly today over delay in payment of compensation to the farmers for their land acquired and inability to facilitate cultivation of land at Zero Line as they charged three Deputy Commissioners of Jammu, Samba and Kathua of having funds worth crores at their disposal but delaying the payments.
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While reply of the question tabled by Vijay Kumar Sharma was read by Health and Medical Education Minister Sakina Itoo on behalf of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who holds charge of Revenue Department, Omar later intervened after observing resentment among the legislators and assured that he will convene a meeting of the MLAs of International Border (IB)/Line of Control (LoC) after the Assembly session and whatever required to address issues of farmers putting up in forward areas will be done.
Surjit Singh Slathia, who asked the question on behalf of Vijay Sharma, who was initially not in the House but joined later, said 13 lakh kanals of land has come under the border fencing.
“Payments in some cases have been made while in other cases the payments are pending despite availability of funds running into crores of rupees at the disposal of the Deputy Commissioners,” Slathia said and demanded an inquiry into this. He added that funds have been kept at the disposal of the DCs of Jammu, Samba and Kathua but the people are not being paid.
BJP MLA Devender Kumar Manyal also claimed that compensation has been kept at disposal of the Deputy Commissioners by the Government but they are not disbursing it. Some of the cases of compensation haven’t been resolved for 15 years, he said, adding every year the farmers were paid compensation twice for not cultivating their crops till the issue of their land is resolved. The payments should be released immediately, he demanded.
Vijay Kumar Sharma, BJP MLA from Hiranagar,said the people should be allowed cultivation of land beyond the fencing.
A heated exchange of words also took place between CPM’s fourth-time MLA MY Tarigami and BJP MLA Balwant Singh Mankotia, when Tarigami wanted to raise a supplementary on the question.
Mankotia alleged there is no border area in the constituency of Tarigami, who is asking questions about a border area of Jammu. Tarigami, however, countered him by saying he can raise question about any area and Jammu does not belong to him alone.
The CPM legislator said he visited Hiranagar only yesterday and the people are living there in pitiable conditions. “What they (the BJP) have done for the people since 2014”? he asked. He said the Chief Minister should look into the issue and ensure compensation for the farmers and cultivation of land in forward areas.
Responding to concerns of the members, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said there was Rs 155 crore worth compensation at disposal of the DCs and Rs 144 crore has been disbursed. Rs 11 crore worth payment is pending and the Deputy Commissioners will be asked to expedite it, he added and said the remaining amount is pending till verification.
Omar assured the members that he will convene a meeting of the MLAs from International Border/Line of Control after the Assembly session and will also call the concerned officers. “Whatever is required to be done will be done. This is a humanitarian issue. Border residents face numerous challenges,” the said.
Asserting that the Government is not sitting on funds, Omar said Rs 11 crore remain unspent in the disbursement process and we will instruct the department to expedite the disbursement efforts on fast track.
He said the border issue is not just one MLA’s concern but is a broader concern for people living in border areas, whether in Jammu or the Kashmir valley.
Earlier, responding to a question from Hiranagar MLA Vijay Kumar during the Question Hour, Minister for Health and Medical Education Sakina Itoo informed that the BSF has acquired 13,415 kanals of land across 113 villages in Jammu, Samba, and Kathua districts of Jammu division for border fencing along the Indo-Pak border.
She said the BSF has laid fencing along a 135-feet wide strip in these border districts.
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