PRESS RELEASE
Dogra Sadar Sabha (DSS) held a meeting to discuss the “Administrative aspirations and challenges” facing the newly formed Union Territory of J&K. The meeting convened by the DSS president Th. Gulchain Singh Charak, welcomed the deliberations by Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) regarding administrative arrangements, job guidelines and land related apprehensions. Former Minister Th. Gulchain Singh Charak explained how the GoI is planning to adopt the Himachal pattern of Article 371 for restricting land transfers by imposing conditional domicile certificates as has appeared in a sections of press. After the meeting the oldest Dogra organization, DSS released a press note elaborating the apprehensions and aspirations of the Dogra region. Recalling the discrimination of past about seventy years, the DSS strongly recommended functioning of two separate secretariats for Jammu and Kashmir in the two existing buildings and function as two autonomous regional councils under the Union Territory of J&K with Shri Chandra Prakash Murmu as Lieutenant Governor. It is important to have separate fund allocations for both regions, in consideration of population.The Jammu region must not be punished for being law abiding nationalists of all communities living together amicably and keeping peace denouncing the Stone / Gun culture. He quoted as to how the two H1N1 (Swine Flu) detection labs sanctioned four years back have been instituted. The one in Kashmir is functional for the last three years while work is stalled for the proposed lab in GMC Jammu for paucity of funds awaiting release procedures. It is not an isolated example said the members since 90 percent staff in the erstwhile J&K State secretariat is from one region and placed under nepotism through back door entries to serve specific regions and masters.
Members pointed out towards the stalled progress of AIIMS, IIT, Gandola, Tawi Lake, Water upper lift canals, Garbage processing units, Vertical Parking slots, Fly Overs, Circular Road and said the list is endless. The creation of Jammu smart city programme is also a non- starter. These works can be completed only by instituting an autonomous regional Council, separate fund allocation and round the year operative secretariat at Jammu.
As regards the transfer of land, the DSS welcomed the domicile arrangement as appeared in the press but recommended that the domicile for residential purpose must be given after 30 years as in case of Himachal Pradesh. The transfer of Land for industrial and commercial purpose must be made after proper scrutiny regarding the capability, capacity, expertise, local employment potential and pollution criterion. Any entrepreneur detrimental to local trade and commercial interests must not be allowed. To employ fixed percentage of local youth and their skill building should be incorporated as pre-conditions. Jammu based local youth may not remain limited to unskilled workers only on their own land under masters migrated from other states. The sanctity of forest land and agricultural land must be maintained and the Kandi areas may be offered for industrial growth allowed with modern town planning, without congestion giving due importance to arboriculture and scientific management of industrial wastes caring for pollution related hazards.
Better management of border regions, Security, safety, protection from Pakistani firing, purposeful engagement of youth, uninterrupted education, Medicare and check on existing rampant narcotic drugs peddling were other issues raised by members.
Time has come for the J&K UT to adopt modern scientific means for enhanced agricultural growth and develop better means of communication like the metro trains, electric busses where feasible.
Most members expressed anguish about the apathy towards our heritage sites which are in ruins and may vanish if the indifference of the previous regimes is allowed to continue, Members urged for public involvement in planning and monitoring of the restoration and development of the protected heritage sites of Jammu region. They also called for a review of the sites as many sites of Jammu Division have been left out in the earlier survey deciding the protected Sites as per the usual discriminatory culture that prevailed and they demanded the Jammu Festival be organized in proper way.
The Press conference was attended by Sh. Prem Sagar Gupta, Col. Dr Virendra K. Sahi,VrC, Gambhir Dev Singh Charak, Col. Karan Singh Jamwal and Amanat Ali Shah.
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