Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Jan 16: The displaced Kashmiri Pandit community has expressed serious concerns over the inclusion of their community in the “One Nation, One Card” digital database under the National Food Security Act (NFSA).
Talking to media persons, here today, the community members called for an immediate review of the process, highlighting the potential risks to their existing relief and ration benefits.
“The NFSA format application, introduced in 2016, was met with unified opposition from the community. The matter was subsequently taken up by the then Relief and Rehabilitation Commissioner with the Government of India, resulting in the deferral of the initiative,” they recalled and added that since then, the displaced community has relied on a separate budget allocation to sustain its relief and ration system, which remains critical to their survival.
Demanding that the submission of NFSA forms be deferred until their permanent rehabilitation in their ancestral motherland, they requested that any ration card issued under the digital database clearly identify the community as “displaced” to safeguard their unique status and ensure uninterrupted benefits.
The community leaders also sought a written assurance from the authorities that no individual will lose their relief or ration entitlement following the implementation of the digitalization process.
The Kashmiri Pandit leaders emphasized that their inclusion under general norms of national schemes risks eroding the recognition of their distinct identity and plight as a displaced population. They asserted that such steps should only be taken after a comprehensive resettlement plan has been executed.
“We have always upheld nationalist values and cooperated with every process. However, this digitalization must not come at the cost of our basic relief and ration rights. We urge the Government authorities to prioritize our rehabilitation and address our concerns with empathy,” they said.
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