Karra, Bhalla visit cloudburst-hit village
Excelsior Correspondent
KISHTWAR, Aug 18: Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) president, Tariq Hameed Karra, visited Chashoti village in Paddar area of Kishtwar district, to assess the ground situation following the devastating cloudburst that claimed 63 lives, left over 100 injured, and many still missing.
Karra was accompanied by working president Raman Bhalla, senior Congress leader and former Minister Ghulam Mohammad Saroori, former MLC Naresh Gupta, Sham Lal Bhagat and a large contingent of local leadership. The leaders met bereaved families, expressed solidarity with the victims, and reviewed the ongoing rescue and relief operations.
Speaking to the media, the PCC chief termed the incident “very tragic” and raised serious concerns over the failure of preventive measures.
“An advisory was issued 48 hours ago, but the question remains – why were people allowed to go there even after that? There are certainly gaps in the rescue operations,” Karra said.
He criticised the Government for the inordinate delay in construction of the Kishtwar-Machail Road, which was sanctioned over 12 years ago but has still not been declared a National Highway. “If the bridge at Chashoti had been completed, the scale of casualties could have been minimised. Many lives would have been saved,” he asserted.
PCC chief urged the Centre to immediately announce a special relief and rehabilitation package for the victims of the Kishtwar cloudburst and flash floods. He added that the magnitude of the tragedy demands urgent intervention from the Government of India.
Meanwhile, JKPCC chief also held a meeting with party activists of Kishtwar at local DCC office and discussed the current situation besides organisational activities in the area.
The meeting was organised by DCC president Asif Naqeeb. The meeting discussed the relief and rescue measures in view of the devastation caused by the cloudburst at Chashoti in the district and the sequence of activities in this regard. Karra asked the party cadres to remain actively associated with the relief and rescue measures and render all possible assistance to the suffering people. He appreciated the entire population/ NGOs and party workers for coming out to render all sorts of help to the affected people and the administration in this huge tragedy.
Working president Raman Bhalla expressed grief, deep sympathies and support to the affected people and demanded Central package for the relief & rehabilitation in view of the magnitude of the disaster.
Senior leaders Sanjeev Panda, Neeraj Gupta, Jatin Vashisht, Naveed Kichloo and others were also present.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
