Mir Iqbal
While the people of Kulgam district in South Kashmir have witnessed new developmental works after it was carved out from Anantnag, but the people in Kulgam Assembly constituency are still struggling for basic amenities like pure drinking water, health care and electricity.
The constituency is represented by the CPI(M) General Secretary MLA, Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami since 2008. He was first time elected from this constituency in 1996 and represents this constituency since then.
The inhabitants of dozens of villages while talking to EXCELSIOR said major projects like Mini Secretariat, District Hospital building and intra-district roads were built, yet they complain about day to day problems faced by them.
“What is the fun of constructing mega buildings and roads when people are being slowly poisoned to death by supplying highly contaminated water,” Haji Bashir Ahmad Dar, of Kulgam town told EXCELSIOR.
Dar said their representative should focus on pure water supply, improvement of health care services and ensure uninterrupted, scheduled power supply, and then these buildings and roads would be meaningful.
The inhabitants accused the Public Health Engineering (PHE) Department of providing them contaminated water.
They said innumerable sewerage outlets and drains of upper areas open in the water supply channels, which is then supplied to them through taps without filtration.
Inhabitants of Chekpora, Ashmuji, Brazul, Skinder, Amnoo and other areas said from last five years water-borne disease break out in these villages due to which hundreds of people including women and children are suffered from diseases like gastroenteritis, diarrhea, typhoid and hepatitis.
Despite crores of rupees being spent on the construction of water supply schemes to ensure the supply of quality water, authorities continue to supply the water to the people without any filtration and chlorination.
Mohammad Yousuf parry, Lumberdar of village Chekpora said scores of latrines at Village Amnoo, wastage of CRPF camp located in the south of Kulgam town on Devsar road, garbage of a revered Shrine in main town Kulgam and pollutants from district hospital Kulgam are directly dumped into the canal, thus, posing threat to thousands of lives.
Parray said even cattle don’t drink tap water that is being fed to the humans. The tap water contains insects, earth worms and yellowish particles remain floating in it.
Locals said that the PHE has dipped pipes into the Veshav stream at village Mirhama and supply it directly to inhabitants in the area without any filtration.
“Nallah Veshav, which drains most of the northern face of Pir Panjal is the main left bank tributary of river Jhelum and traverses through District Kulgam, has been polluted to the extent that fowl smell emanates from it due to which health of thousands of inhabitants is at risk,” Mohammad Yaqoob, a local said.
Terming the contaminated water supply as “poison”, the inhabitants said the water pipes are also damaged at many places which suck dirty water of canals and drains at several places through big holes and the same water is being supplied without any filtration.
The residents alleged that despite crores of rupees spent on construction of water tank at village Amnoo and Panepora water supply scheme, the authorities failed to supply filtrated water.
“Recently, a water borne disease spread in our village which affected health of more than 30 people, we visited Chief Medical Officer, Kulgam and he asked people not to take tap water without boiling,” said Master Mohammad Khalil Bhat of Chekpora, adding when the villagers asked CMO that district hospital waste also contaminates the water canal, he downplayed the issue.
The angry villagers said that they visited Deputy Commissioner, Kulgam thrice after the spread of water borne disease; he didn’t pay any heed to their pleas.
Since farming is the main source of economy in this constituency, the inhabitants said for that they need proper irrigation canals, but the canals are dysfunctional as these are not cleaned by Irrigation Department despite the users paying irrigation tax (Aabiyan) regularly.
The locals also leveled allegations against the PHE for setting their main office building on fire to hide the mass bungling carried out by some vested interested people from past some years.
“We filed an RTI to know the status of Duderkoot to Yamrash and Kulgam water supply schemes, but instead of replying us, they (PHE) official set the building on fire,” they alleged.
The residents also said dozens of other villages in the constituency which include village Laroo, Shurat, Bugam, Poniwah, Awgam, Katrasoo, Shalipora, Chancer, Okey, Hadigam, Awhatoo, Amnoo, Checkpora, Mirhama, Lisoo, Chehlan, Behibagh, Nanibugh, Sangus, Nillow, Mahipora, Daderkoot, Tantraypora, Sempora, Munad Guffan, Manchiva, Dessand, Hanjan, Turigam, Parigam, Pariwan, Odura are facing similar problems.
Similarly, inhabitants of this Constituency said that they are satisfied with the timely construction of many projects with the personal efforts of local CPI (M) leader and MLA Kulgam Assembly constituency Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami, but maintained that little attention was given to some other important projects like drinking water supply, electricity and health care.
They said 105 villages from Nehama town to Ashmuji village and Munad to Devsar regions are facing irregular power supply and it has become too faulty to cater to the genuine energy needs of consumers in the constituency.
“Kulgam seems to be at the receiving end of this power crisis. Villages receiving erratic power supply for the most of the time face numerous other problems on account of low voltage,” Ghulam Hassan, a local Sarpanch said.
While the Power Development Department (PDD) attributes the erratic power supply to overloading and pilferage, the residents blame the Government for the crisis.
“The unscheduled power cuts are adding to our miseries and there is no improvement in power supply from last many years despite people here staged protested several times in the past,” Hassan said, adding, the situation has gone from bad to worse now as power cuts are more frequent and extended during the evening hours.
The residents also expressed their dissatisfaction with the functioning of district hospital Kulgam, and other health centers in the constituency, adding only construction of huge buildings doesn’t guarantee better health care, but deployment of human resources in good number with accountability would have played a major role in health sector here.
Abdul Rashid Tantray, a local resident said that the doctors most of the time remain absent from their duty during the night hours, due to which a number of death cases were reported in the hospital for last few years. “A woman doctor has unleashed her might and rule and if any attendant of patient raises genuine issue regarding treatment, she starts hurling abuses and threatens of police action,” he said.
Tantray said the referral records of this hospital would suggest the number of patients who were referred to territory hospitals in Srinagar after surgeries conducted at Kulgam hospital.
People’s Democratic Party, candidate for Kulgam Assembly Constituency, Nazir Ahmad Laway said that there are some medicos deployed in hospital, who have made it their personnel property due to their contacts with a particular political leader.
“Some medicos are enjoying political patronage, which has ruined the quality treatment of patients,” he said, adding, District Hospital Kulgam is the only hospital where police has registered maximum FIRs against the attendants rather than those responsible for the death of precious lives due medical negligence or any other issues.
The constituency is represented by Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami who defeated PDP candidate Nazir Ahmad Lawvey by over 200 votes in 2008 Assembly elections. Tarigami polled 17175 votes while Lawvey polled 16939 votes.
MLA Kulgam Constituency, Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami said that his style of developmental work is different because of which he completed almost all the major projects on time. “You will not see massive development in any constituency in Kashmir except in my constituency,” he said.
When asked that water borne diseases broke out in some villages including Chekpora, Ashmuji, Brazul, Skinder, Amnoo and others, Tarigami said when he received the information about the spread of water borne diseases in the area, he directed a team of doctors to visit the area and ensure proper treatment of patients. “I visited the villages to ensure that people won’t suffer from basic amenities including drinking water,” he said.
“Doctors found Hepatitis B and C have broken out there because of intake of excessive drugs,” said Tarigami. He said some people who tried to hide their fault and shifted the blame on impure water. “Work on several water supply schemes, filtration plants, service reservoirs are near completion. Some new water supply schemes have been approved,” he said.
Commenting on electricity crisis in Kulgam constituency, the MLA said that his constituency does not face any power crisis. “Power crisis is the problem of whole Kashmir, not confined to his constituency,” he said.
Claiming that Kulgam has the best healthcare facilities available in South Kashmir, Tarigami said district hospital Kulgam was constructed in record time where almost all the facilities are available. “We have latest equipment available in the hospital”, he said.
Showing displeasure against some doctors for preferring to serve only in cities, the MLA said those doctors selected on reservation quote like RBA, SC, ST and ALC don’t want to stay in their remote areas.”I requested these doctors to stay here to help poor and needy,” he said.
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