Srinagar, 06 July: Jammu and Kashmir National Conference Party President and Member of Parliament from Srinagar Dr. Farooq Abdullah on Monday expressed anguish over the losses to property and standing crops of people due to the gusty winds that unleashed havoc on Sunday evening in different parts of Kashmir division, impressing upon the administration to reach out to the affected without delay.
The farmers of Kashmir regrettably have no respite, they have all through been at the receiving end on one account or another, party President said while expressing unison with the people whose property, and crops were destroyed due to the gusty winds. He said the vagaries of weather besides having a chilling effect on the annual crop yield also prove heavy on their pockets. “Farmers start their agricultural activity with their eyes set on the annual produce, hoping that the prospective bumper crop will help them refurbish their resources, help them provide for their families and repay their loans. The slack attitude of the administration in coming to the rescue of farmers, and unavailability of proper insurance cover compounds the miseries of farmers,” he said.
Lamenting the slipshod approach of the administration in failing to rise to the expectations of people during such catastrophes, he said that previously the administration failed to provide recompense to affected families which had incurred heavy losses due to inclement weather conditions during preceding months. “The response of the government towards the predicaments of farmers has been disappointing; the attitude of the government has only added to woes of distressed farmers, horticulturalists and people associated with other allied activities of farming. The distress the farmers of J&K are going through necessitate for both short term and long term intervention. On short term basis loan waivers and debt waivers will go a long way in alleviating their sufferings and on long term basis farmer friendly well-intended schemes should be implemented to strengthen the backbone of farmers by increasing MSP, increasing insurance cover, doling out soft loans, and building rural infrastructure. I express my solidarity with the affected whose dwellings, crops, livestock have incurred heavy losses,” he said.
He prayed for the fast upturn of affected families saying that the administration is bound by its duty to come to the rescue of affected at an earliest, ascertain the losses and provide adequate recompense. He also called upon the party’s district functionaries, YNC functionaries to lend helping hand to the affected lot in whichever way they can.
Party’s Members of Parliament Muhammad Akbar Lone, Justice (Retd.) Hasnain Masoodi have urged the administration to rush revenue teams to the affected areas to ascertain the losses to people. The duo asked the administration to pay adequate recompense to the affected. They also asked the divisional administration to restore power and electricity supply on priority basis.
