Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Jan 28: Senior National Conference leader and Party General Secretary Advocate Ali Mohammad Sagar today urged the Central Government to release funds meant for flood victims of the State.
Sagar while addressing people at his residence including the flood victims from the Srinagar city said that as the elections in the State are over, the Central Government should now shift its focus towards the miserable plight of the flood victims.
“State cabinet has already approved apackage after the floods in a cabinet meeting during Omar’s tenure, but I fail to understand that what stops the Union Government from releasing the amount as asked by the State Government. This particular amount could have helped in rehabilitating the flood affected people to a large extent,” Sagar said.
The senior party leader said that National Conference stands for the complete rehabilitation of the flood victims, hundreds of whom are still homeless, in this bone-chilling cold.
“The rehabilitation of the flood victims has been prioritised by the National Conference only and all other parties are doing nothing then offering lip-service to the victims, which is akin to rubbing salt on their wounds,” Sagar said adding “Rather than being serious about the miseries of the flood victims, the central government has indulged itself in politicking about various issues, instead it should work effectively for the rehabilitation of the flood victims of the State.”
He said it will take years to develop the areas which have been hugely devastated by floods and the immediate financial assistance could have helped in rebuilding the areas that are in ruins these days.
“Infrastructure in schools and college’s could have been again installed; many hospitals are without equipments even today. The whole world knows that most important Government institutions like civil secretariat or High Court and other important institutions were under water and we had submitted a proposal to the Centre for releasing Rs 44,00 crore so that the hospitals which still san the basic machinery like CT-scan or X-ray machines and other important facilities could have been developed,” he said.
He regretted that the Central Government has been using the dilly delaying tactics to release the Rs 44,000 crore as asked by the Omar Abdullah led Government.
“We had asked the amount so that to pay Rs 9 lakh for every damaged house, Rs 6-7lakh for partially damaged and free loan for the businessmen so that they could have revived the business again. But the Central Government never looked serious in solving the miseries of the Kashmiris,” Sagar said.
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