Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Mar 19: The Jammu and Kashmir Contractors Coordination Committee (JKCCC) has raised serious concern over the non-payment of pending liabilities, highlighting a disparity in fund disbursement between Kashmir and Jammu-based contractors.
In a meeting of the members here, JKCCC Chairman Ghulam Jeelani Purza urged the Government to take immediate action to clear long-overdue payments, particularly those pending since 2014. He pointed out that liabilities dating back to previous Governments, including those led by Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti, remain unresolved.
“The Government appears indecisive on this issue. Despite repeated assurances, a significant portion of payments for works executed under previous Governments remains unpaid. While liabilities in Jammu have been largely cleared, Kashmiri contractors are still awaiting their dues. This is a clear case of injustice,” Purza stated.
He revealed that the outstanding liability stood at Rs 500 crore in 2019, equally divided between Kashmir and Jammu. However, while most of Jammu’s dues have been cleared, Kashmiri contractors continue to struggle for their rightful payments.
“If we are part of the same region and the government aims for equal development, why is there such discrimination against Kashmiri contractors? We do not oppose the genuine payments of Jammu-based contractors, but why has Kashmir been ignored?” Purza questioned.
Jeelani Purza further pointed out that while the Jammu division’s outstanding liability now stands at merely Rs 17 crore, Kashmiri contractors are still awaiting the clearance of Rs 250 crore in dues, raising serious concerns over discriminatory treatment.
“We have all the allotment papers and various verifications have been conducted over time for these projects that remain unpaid. We had taken huge loans and now we are burdened with financial liabilities due to government inaction,” he added.
“More than 21 SEs posts and multiple Executive Engineer positions remain vacant, severely impacting project execution and developmental progress across Kashmir. These critical positions should have been filled in advance to prevent delays in project completion,” he emphasized.
In the light of these pressing concerns, Purza made a humble appeal to J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary and top Financial and Administrative secretaries to intervene and resolve the crisis.
The Contractors Coordination Committee has urged J&K legislators to take up this matter in the ongoing Assembly session
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