Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, June 16: The Jammu Kashmir Sharnarthi Action Committee (JKSAC) has strongly condemned the State Relief and Rehabilitation Minister Basharat Bhukhari for misleading the House regarding the settlement issues of DP’s of 1947 from PoK and termed his statement as readymade and fabricated prepared by people having negative mindset in the administration.
While expressing his resentment over the statement given in response to a question raised by a member, JKSAC president Gurdev Singh said that Minister should know that no registration regarding the total number of families and their loss of life and properties, who left Pok in 1947 have been made till date neither by State Govt nor by Govt of India on the plea that if done so the Central Govt will lose its claim over PoK in international forums.
The only formal registration of 31,619 families, viz-a-viz 22,719 allotted land, 5300 families settled outside the State, 3600 families allotted plots/quarters was made for the purpose of ex-gratia relief provided by GoI in 1960-62. A large chunk of 9500 families were rejected on certain flimsy grounds for ex-gratia relief and later on considered in August 2000 package sanctioned for compensation in lieu of having deficiency in land allotted. He added that it is totally unjustified and illegal to compensate uniformly to DP’s having deficiency in land and fix rate Rs 5000/Kanal with a ceiling to Rs 25,000 and again enhance rate to Rs 30,000/Kanal with a ceiling to Rs 1.5 lakhs which exist nowhere even at borders where bullets are exchanged everyday.
He further said that as per Govt report submitted to a Parliamentary Committee in 1978, 27,00,000 Kanal of EP land was available in State viz-a-viz 15,26,854 Kanal in Jammu region and approximately 12,00,000 Kanal in Kashmir region. Out of this land only 6,80,850 Kanal of EP land was allotted to DP’s of 1947, 1965 and 1971 and 46,466 Kanal was allotted to West Pakistan refugees settled in Jammu where the rest of the land has gone the Govt is only answerable.
He contradicted the assertion of the minister and said the DP’s have been allotted land 4 acres of `Aabi’ or 6 acre `Khushki’ irrespective of their family strength. The fact is that the DP’s were allotted land as per the Govt order No. 254-C and 570-C @ 2 acres to 4 acres Abi or 3 acres to 6 acres Khushki as per the strength of their family members.
He said that the cost of land allotted to DP’s was deducted @ Rs 2500 uniformly out of ex-gratia relied of Rs 3500 provided by GoI in 1962 and only Rs 1000 was paid to them. There are more than 8,000 families having deficiency in land allotted, the State Govt is urged upon to ascertain the total strength of families having deficiency. He urged the minister to study the case carefully and then reply in the House.
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