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| Jammu’s Woe Has National Resonance – Treat it carefully | |
By B L Saraf
It is not an overstatement that , after the partition , Jammu’s has been a tale of woes . True , other parts of the state also suffered but the region’s loss in terms of administrative and political influence is immeasurable . History has devastated Jammu but the geography, too ,has not been kind to it . Post independence this region had to pay dearly for the sins committed by others . However, to Jammu’s credit , despite the grave provocations it stood steadfast on the principles of secularism and syncretism : so much so that people from all corners of the state and of all the beliefs found peace and solace here and took to it as a second home .
People in the Jammu region are crying in pain as they feel cheated by the Central government’s move to bye- pass it while sanctioning AIIMS in the state, and by the state government’s decision to discontinue the construction of the Tawi Lake . Some may tend to see the government action purely in administrative and financial terms . But a medical institute , equipped with modern facilities ,would be a boon for any place ; more so for a one like Jammu whose geographic terrain is so treacherous and the poverty of the populace so abject . And, a lake near the city would definitely add grace and charm to the ambience , sufficient to attract tourists which in turn will create economic avenues for so many unemployed . We are sure PM Narandra Modi understands it better . So should CM Mufti Sayeed know the importance of one more tourist destination in the state . Moreover , the experts tell us that the such a lake would enrich the ground water table and be a help in irrigation .
It is to state the obvious that there is a huge trust deficit between Jammu and the Kashmir Valley . Even a genuine administrative or an economic step taken for one region is considered an undue largess for the other . Unfortunately, governments ( of all hues ) revel in heightening the suspicion . They see political prosperity in it . Moghul Road and the Kishtiwar – Anantnag Road could be the examples. What could be a boost for the economic prosperity of the underdeveloped areas and a much need alternative to the BC Road has got enwrapped in a suspicion . Some elements in Kashmir project it as their effort to enlarge Valley’s social ,cultural and political influence over some strategic areas in the Jammu region . It t is tragedy that nothing is being done by the responsible quarters to dispel the impression. People in Jammu region , rightly , get the feeling of being squeezed out. Perception, as a rule , outplays the reality, though the latter does not lose the ground . But when nothing is done to clear the air , the perception entrenches itself as the ‘ reality ‘.
Nobody should fault people of Jammu for having resorted to a peaceful protest to press their demand . We may recall that after creation of more Districts, in 2006 , the previous government instituted Committees headed by senior bureaucrats ( Retired ) to re-organize and rationalize the existing revenue and rural development units across the state and recommend creation of more units , wherever required. There was a furor all over the state against the recommendations of the Committees . Residents of one area complained against the other and started a protest . Bowing to the electoral compulsions , particularly in the Valley , the state government superimposed a third Committee of the Ministers , headed by the then DY CM ,to look into the matter a fresh . So , we got a set of recommendations which played financial havoc and made mockery of the whole exercise with creation of far more units than were necessary - often overlapping one another . Comparisons are not good but, given what is at the stake , people in the Jammu province have a hugely justifiable cause to agitate . Care, however, is to be taken that the protest does not turn into an animosity between the two regions . Trust deficit should be minimized .
Coming to the larger point , for Jammu it is not just a question of missing one medical institute .It is about region’s ‘perceived ‘ fall off the national radar and of a feeling of being treated as an object of ‘ adjustment ‘ . When something major is in the offing for other part of the state Jammu gets crumbs as an ‘accommodating’ measure . People in Jammu have myriad reasons to feel hurt . The region’s geographical spread and the population dispersal do not find commensurate representation in the Assembly . We have people from POK and refugees from W. Pakistan denuded of their basic human rights . In life reality can sometimes be a brute . In the context of J&K state the pre-eminence of the Valley to attract near total national attention is the example . May be the relation of state with India , brought about in peculiar circumstances , and the regional and demographic character of J&K has something to do with it . In that case one has to endure the bitter truth – in all pervading ‘national interest’ . But everything has a limit !
Everybody talks about aspirations of the Kashmiris . So have the people in Jammu . Both must be addressed concurrently . Most people had welcomed the formation of PDP- BJP Alliance for governance in the state . Precisely, for the reason that coming together of two political formulations, with their different regional vote base , will be a bridge between the regions and the development would happen on even scale . They still retain the hope . However , if the people Jammu feel repeatedly slighted and ignored the optimism of the admirers will wear thin .
Jammu is endowed with a hugely accommodating nature which we experienced in the trying times . Together, with its strategic placement in the region Jammu can act as a countervailing force to thwart the sectarian and fissiparous tendencies . A destabilized Jammu , therefore, will have serious national implications . Jammu’s tale of woe must come to an end . That may pave a road for us to walk side by side peacefully and in dignity . May be therein lies the J&K’s salvation !
(B L Saraf is former Principal District & Sessions Judge. Feedback- [email protected])
(Opinions expressed in write-ups/articles/Letters are the sole responsibility of the authors and they may not represent the Scoop News)
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