Suhail Bhat
PULWAMA, Feb 14: Kashmiri Pandit (KP) employees living in Hawl transit camp in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district said that they are living in fear and intimidation amid rising militant attacks and stone pelting incidents in the nearby areas and demand the Government to relocate them to safer place.
Nearly 65 dilapidated pre-fabricated huts are housing more than 110 migrant Kashmiri Pandits who are living in extremely poor living condition. They allege that the Government is not serious to look into their issues as there is security threat in the area that is forcing them to seek help.
There has been a steep rise in militancy in Pulwama after 2016 unrest and incidents of stone pelting are reported every day. The residents of Hawl transit camp said they fear for their lives and few have left for Jammu.
“Government made us fool by shifting us to militancy-hit area. Government let us down. We cannot let our children venture out of the colony as there is chronic stone pelting near the colony. It is too dangerous. Every day we hear about the attack by militants. In 2016, they attacked us. We are living in fear and desperation,” said Sandeep Bhat, a resident of Hawl transit camp.
He added: “These huts are poorly made. It is poor infrastructure. When we came here, we came with a hope that we will be living in good surroundings and good infrastructure. But Government cheated us. They wanted us to return and on the other hand they did not give us good infrastructure and security. We are living in fear and intimidation each day.”
The feeling of insecurity and loss is deeply embedded among Kashmiri Pandits, who preferred to stay put in their homes, braving the threats and political uncertainty, at the height of political unrest in the Valley. According to many Kashmiri Pandits, the Centre’s package, which has divided the community as “migrants” and “non-migrants” is tantamount to “rubbing salt on wounds”.
KP employees said that TV debates on Kashmiri Pandits are only to politicize the issue. “The conclusion of such debates is to politicize the issue and to use us as scapegoats. We have not seen any progress in our demands. We demand better infrastructure, healthcare, school, and jobs. But it seems Government is not paying heed to our demands and is looking the other way round,” they said.
Another resident of the colony, Arvind, said that when he and his wife came to the camp, there was nothing except the poorly made huts. “We with the help of locals donated money to improve the condition of the colony. There was no electricity, no water and other essentials. The Government let us fend for ourselves,” he added.
Deputy Commissioner Pulwama, Ghulam Mohammad when contacted said the decision of relocation has to be taken by the Government but other issues confronting the community would be looked into. “We will look into the issues related to the security of the colony,” he said, adding drinking water supply has already been restored. He added that the demand of boundary wall on the rare side and other problems faced by them would be looked into.
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