STATE TIMES NEWS
Jammu: The Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday urged the Lieutenant Governor administration to take a sympathetic view on the issue of Kashmiri Pandit and Dogra employees serving in the valley and release their salaries immediately. The BJP panel headed by former deputy chief minister Nirmal Singh conducted a two-day visit to various camps of Kashmiri Pandit employees posted in the valley under the prime minister’s special package. The visit was held to assess the security situation and threat perception after a chain of targeted killings of employees of the two communities and Hindu labourers.
“The BJP committee has urged the union territory administration to take a sympathetic and considerate view on the issue of PM package employees (displaced Kashmir Pandits), reserved category employees (Dogras) serving in the valley and release their salaries immediately”, the panel’s spokesperson said.
The administration has assured to take a sympathetic view of the issue, he said.
The committee met senior officials in the Valley to apprise them of the concerns and fears of the Kashmiri Pandits and employees under the PM package and reserved category posted in Kashmir.
It also raised the issue of safe and secure accommodation of these employees here, he said.
The committee members appealed that till the security concerns of the PM package employees were not addressed, they should be allowed to work from home and their salaries be released forthwith, he said.
They also pointed out the threat perception was still very strong due to the recurring targeted killings, he said.
The BJP leaders flagged the issue of providing safe and secure accommodation to these employees, the spokesperson said.
Divisional Commissioner P K Pole assured some flats will be constructed by December this year, while the remaining will be completed by June, 2023.
The committee demanded that till the time their accommodations are not ready, the estate department should make some safe and secure alternate arrangements, the spokesperson said.
He said the committee members visited Shopian’s Awalpura and Baramulla’s Khwaja Bagh and asked for expediting the construction work, which it felt was going on at a slow pace.
Besides, the committee demanded that instead of constructing one-room sets, these should be two-room flats so that they are livable, he said.