Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, June 1: Residents of border villages along the International Border in Suchetgarh and RS Pura, under the banner of the Border Village Action Committee, staged a protest outside the Divisional Commissioner’s office, at Jammu, demanding complete waiver of electricity charges and relief for families affected by decades of cross-border shelling, displacement and economic hardship.
The protest was led by former DDC Suchetgarh, Taranjit Singh Tony, along with sarpanches, Panches, Numberdars and representatives of 46 border villages situated on the zero line. Following the protest, a memorandum was submitted to the Divisional Commissioner for onward transmission to the Lieutenant Governor and the Jammu and Kashmir Government.
Addressing the gathering, Tony said that border residents have suffered immense hardships due to repeated Pakistani shelling and firing since 1996, forcing thousands to migrate from their homes on multiple occasions. He said the farming community has faced severe losses as standing crops were damaged by firing incidents, while unseasonal rains in recent years have further devastated agricultural production.
He alleged that despite these hardships, the Power Development Department continues to levy flat-rate electricity charges on agricultural pump sets and domestic consumers. Tony further said that several border villages are not receiving adequate irrigation water, resulting in crop damage and heavy financial losses to farmers already struggling to sustain their livelihoods.
Tony urged the Government to provide immediate relief to border residents. He demanded that the promised scheme of 200 units of free electricity be implemented beginning with the 46 villages situated on the zero line.
Prominent participants included- Sarwan Kumar (Numberdar), Bachan Lal, Jai Dev Singh, Pritam Singh, Sher Singh, Surinder Singh Chib, Romesh Lal, Mohinder Lal, Jasbir Singh, Nasib Singh, Gurdyal Singh, and many others.
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