Pappu Ji Koul
The unfortunate and hapless package employees are agitating from past over 50 days and to be specific from May 12, 2022; the sorrowful day Rahul Bhat, a PM package employee of revenue department was assassinated in broad day light in the crowded Tehsil office in Chadoora in Budgam district. Since that day the package employees are on the strike in Jammu and other parts of Kashmir. They are not asking for the moon and stars but are demanding the safety of their life, limb and honour. The package employees are demanding their relocation from Kashmir to Jammu division and other nearby states so that their precious lives are saved and they are able to work without any fear, duress and depression and oppression. The targeted killings of the soft targets such as Kashmiri Pandits, package employees, Hindu employees of Jammu posted across Kashmir, non-local officers and laborers continue without any respite and it is a cause of great and grave concern to the government and the general public all alike. There is the atmosphere of fear, panic and frustration rite large on the face of the package employees. The fear psychosis rules supreme in the valley and the package employees are unable to perform their duties in such a surcharged atmosphere and environment. The package employees have made it clear to UT administration of UT that they cannot live and work across Kashmir valley because of the fear of the targeted killings and big risk to their lives from gun tottering terrorists. The atmosphere and the ground situation is not conducive and feasible at all for the living and working in Kashmir for the package employees as the fear of the gun looms making it impossible for the employees to live and work in valley. The envelop of fear has gripped Kashmir and the innocent civilians including Kashmiri Pandits, package employees, Hindu employees from Jammu posted across Kashmir and the non local officers and last but not the least the non local laborers are being killed by the terrorists with sadistic pleasure and without any remorse by the terrorists owing allegiance to so called Jihad. Thus, ground conditions are totally not feasible and conducive for the package employees for living and performing duties across Kashmir Valley. Thus these hapless creatures are demanding their relocation outside the Kashmir to Jammu division and other nearby states so that their lives are not risked and at the same time they can contribute to the work efficiency. The dance of death, blood bath and mayhem is continuing in Kashmir and the package employees are becoming targets of the selective killings and in this atmosphere of fear and uncertainty the package employees cannot live and perform their duties across Kashmir valley. Thus these unfortunate sons of mother India are demanding their relocation to Jammu division and other nearby states so that their lives are saved. The package employees are on protest from over a month but the UT government and the BJP government of centre is not paying any heed and attention towards the genuine problems of the package employees. It seems that the BJP government of centre and the UT administration are unconcerned and unnerved about the sad plight of the package employees and as such they do not pay any attention towards the agitating package employees. The government is paying a deaf ear to the pressing demand of the relocation of the package employees to Jammu division. The BJP is only concerned with the vote bank politics and is using and throwing rather dumping the Kashmiri Pandits as per their utility and convenience. The BJP seems least concerned with the welfare of the Kashmiri Pandits but only uses them as vote catching device in different states of India. The government is insensitive and unconcerned to the problems of the package employees and so do not pay any attention towards the pressing demand of their relocation to Jammu division. The government should accede the genuine demand of the relocation of the package employees to Jammu division an d other nearby states.Thus the UT government should order their shifting to Jammu province so that their life and honor is saved. Therefore, without wasting time and energy the UT government should order the relocation of the package employees to Jammu division so that the aspirations of the package employees are fulfilled. By ordering relocation the UT government will kill two birds with one stone. On one hand, the precious lives of the package employees will be saved and on the other side the relocated package employees will contribute their might to the productivity and efficiency. But, it seems that the UT government and BJP government of centre are indifferent and reluctant to the genuine demand of the relocation of the package employees and so they do not give any importance to the agitating package employees. The government both of the UT and the centre is maintaining a stoic silence over the demands of the package employees and are in fact ignoring them. In Kashmir day in and day out the innocent civilians including Kashmiri Pandit package employees are being killed by the terrorists without any respite and remorse and this has created fear psychosis in the minds of the package employees as such they are unable to perform their duties across Kashmir valley and so they demand their shifting to safer Jammu division so that their life, limb and dignity is saved. The government should shun its rigid stand and ego and order the relocation of the package employees to Jammu and other nearby states so that their precious life is saved. The government should not make Kashmiri Pandits as the sitting ducks and cannon fodders to the roaring guns of the terrorist. They should not be made sacrificial goats to be sacrificed at the altar of the secular democracy of the country. The package employees have made it clear to the government that they cannot live and work in Kashmir in the prevailing surcharged atmosphere and so they demand their relocation to Jammu division for the time being. The ground conditions in Kashmir are far from being normal as killings of the innocents and security forces are continuing without any respite. When the security forces are not safe in Kashmir then how can they provide security to the innocent civilians and the Kashmiri Pandits and package employees? The BJP government of the centre and the UT government are painting a rosy picture of the Kashmir and are only parroting the false narrative of normalcy in Kashmir. The fact is that the conditions are far from normal as the targeted killings are taking place across Kashmir valley.In fact the normalcy balloon of the BJP and the UT administration has since punctured and there are no takers of the false theory of normalcy in Kashmir. Therefore the package employees cannot work in the atmosphere of fear and panic in Kashmir and therefore it is the best option that the government should order their relocation outside the Kashmir valley to Jammu division so that they do not become cannon fodders to the guns of the terrorists. Thus the government should wake up from the deep slumber and shun their rigid stand and order the relocation of the package employees to Jammu division. The package employees are agitating in the scorching heat of the June from the last over a month, but it is not affecting the powers that be. Now the package employees have decided to continue their agitation in the premises of the relief commissioner migrants at canal road and so all the package employees are uniting to continue their peaceful protest at Relief Commissioner’s office premises to force the government to pay heed towards their genuine demand of relocation to Jammu division. The Relief Commissioner is the guardian of the migrants and therefore he should convey the demands of the protesting package employees to the UT administration for its early resolution. Relief commissioner is the channel of communication between the government and the Pandits migrants and so he should convey the demands of the agitating package employees to the UT government so that the problems of these hapless employees are addressed and solved .In short the LG administration should pay heed towards the agitating package employees and order their relocation to Jammu division because nothing short of relocation is acceptable to package employees. Now enough is enough, the government should shun its ego and order the relocation of the package employees to Jammu division. The relocation of the package employees to Jammu will not lead to the failure of the return and rehabilitation policy because the employment package is an economic package and it is not a rehabilitation package and there is need for delinking the employment package with return and rehabilitation policy. Thus, the government should order the relocation of the package employees to Jammu division so that their precious lives are saved and they are in position to work without any fear, duress and oppression. So, the government should pay topmost attention towards the agitating package employees and redress their genuine demand of relocation to Jammu division.
(The author is Retired Education Officer).
