Asking the party workers to gear up and try their best to address the winter vagaries faced by the flood affected families, Syed Mohammad Altaf Bukhari, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senior leader and MLA Amirakadal Friday said there is a dire need for adequate relief and resettlement of the flood displaced families.Addressing a workers’ post-election review meeting at his Sheikh Bagh office here, Bukhari pressed the party men to display a missionary zeal while extending all possible help to mitigate the sufferings of flood-displaced families in various areas of Amirakadal. He said the living condition of these families has further worsened with the onset of winter season and most of the families are vulnerable to the cold born diseases.
Bukhari urged the administration to expedite the resettlement work and take all precautionary measures to protect flood affected families from cold, distribute materials such as blankets and fuels to vulnerable families and alert health institutions to provide timely treatment to these families.The MLA elect also informed the workers about the minutes of the post-flood official review meeting that he chaired few days ago. Referring to this official meeting, Bukhari stressed on his workers to collect the 16-digit bank account numbers of the families who are yet to submit the same before the administration for the direct transfer of monetary assistance to their accounts. He also urged the flood victims of his constituency to cooperate with the administration in registration, re-verification and re-assessment of the damages caused to their houses so that they get their ex-gratia amount without any hassles.
While emphasizing on a long-term comprehensive plan for re-settlement in the flood affected areas, Bukhari expressed serious concern over the plight of families who are still living in temporary housing set-up. He asked the administration to provide winter shelters to such families without any further delay. “Though the long term plans are possible only after a liberal financial package from the central government, but till then the administration must address the sufferings of the flood affected families utilizing the State Disaster Relief Funds,” he stressed further. He also laid emphasis on the administration particularly the Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) to address the choked drains in Amirakadal which has caused nuisance in the constituency. “The blocked drains need to be cleared on priority basis before the first snowfall of this winter,” Bukhari stressed on the SMC drainage wing.
The MLA Elect also asked the administration to cover all the flood affected families who have suffered extensive damages to their houses under rental allowances scheme and provide these allowances without any procedural wrangling. “It is pathetic that many such flood hit families are either residing with their relatives or still moving from pillar to post for these allowances. There are reports that many families either live in shops or sheds. The authorities must mitigate sufferings of these families before the first snowfall of this winter,” Bukhari stressed.
The MLA Elect also stressed on the part workers to prioritize the developmental works in their respective areas that need government attention. “The party workers must chalk out a priority list of works to be undertaken in their respective areas. I will ensure that all these developmental works are completed within their stipulated time,” Bukhari assured.While hailing the ‘support programme’ initiated by the Jammu and Kashmir Bank Ltd to benefit flood affected families, Bukhari urged the JK Bank administration to cover the left out families who have not received the winter-kits from the bank. The meeting was also addressed by Abdul Hamid Kosheen, party’s state coordinator, Haji Parvez Ahmad district coordinator Srinagar and Shuja Sarwar, party’s youth general secretary.