Welcoming the decision of various state’s to appoint Nodal Officers for addressing the issues of Kashmiri students studying there, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) today said other states, where there is sizeable population of Kashmiri students, must also take a similar initiative.“It is a welcome step that 13 states and Union Territories including Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Chandigarh, Assam, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Sikkim, Daman and Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli have appointed police nodal officers for Kashmiri students,” PDP Chief Spokesperson, Dr Mehboob Beg said in a statement today.He said the Union Ministry of Home Affairs should ask the states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, Maharashtra and Karnataka, where a sizeable number of Kashmiri students study, to appoint special police nodal officers as has been done by other states to ensure a sense of security for the Kashmiri students in the respective states. “As the reports of intimidation of Kashmiri students have in recent past mostly poured in from states like Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh it would be highly appreciable if these states also appoint Nodal Officers for Kashmiri students,” he said.Meanwhile, Dr Beg has hailed the State Government’s decision to institutionalize the cross-LoC trade by replacing the existing barter system with proper banking facilities.
“The significant decision of the State Cabinet headed by Ms Mehbooba Mufti to work out modalities for replacing the barter system with banking facilities would go a long way in expanding the ambit and scope of the cross-LoC trade and take it to the next higher level,” he said.He said unfortunately there was no movement forward on this significant confidence building measure during the past eight years and the credit goes to the present Government for taking a major initiative towards institutionalizing the cross-LoC trade. “The success of the cross-LoC trade is an indicator of India and Pakistan achieving greater cooperation in Jammu and Kashmir to anchor a new era of peace and stability in the region through economic collaboration,” he said.Dr Beg also hailed the State Government’s decision to develop tourism infrastructure along the borders for promotion of border tourism in the State. He said the initiative will not only facilitate overall development of the border areas but also give fillip to the local economies through tourism promotion in the area. “We hope the Government of Pakistan will also reciprocate the initiative by opening up the borders along J&K for tourists as is happening at Wagah in Punjab,” he said.
Dr Beg also hailed the Government’s roadmap for implementation of the interest-subvention scheme for flood-fit traders and substantial increase in the honorarium of the village Lumberdars from Rs 751 to Rs 1501 and Chowkidars from Rs 750 to Rs 1500 and assigning a new job profile to them.Welcoming the decision of the State Government to take a holistic review of the issues related to Police Gazetted Services, the PDP Chief Spokesperson said the move would go a long way in addressing the cadre issues of this important service. He also hailed the Government’s decision to constitute a Committee to compile the data and skill profile of all such persons who are working in various departments on temporary basis so that a decision could be taken accordingly.Dr Beg also hailed the landmark welfare and other initiatives taken by the present government including launch of ‘Mufti Mohammad Sayeed Food Entitlement Scheme (MMSFES)’ to be implemented from July 2016, constitution of Groups of Ministers to fast-track infrastructure development in the State, grant of additional pension to elderly pensioners and setting up of exclusive Women Police Stations which will start functioning from May 2016. (KNS)