J&K to give temporary, safe accommodations to Pandit staff

NEW DELHI: The Jammu and Kashmir administration has decided to offer temporary safe accommodation of choice to those Kashmiri Pandits who are working in the Valley, living in rented homes and sought to be moved to “more secure” quarters, people familiar with the matter said.

Kashmiri Pandits deputed in the Valley under the PM package, launched for the rehabilitation of the community in 2008, had petitioned the government to relocate them to district headquarters where they could be put up in secure locations, a senior government functionary said.

“We have decided that these employees who don’t live in government quarters can reach out to the divisional commissioners and they can be temporarily put up in hotels or gated neighbourhoods of their choice till the construction of government accommodation is complete,” the functionary added.

Following last week’s killing of an employee, Rahul Bhat, who was posted in the tehsil office in Chadoora, employees working in the Valley have demanded safer accommodation and are pressing the administration to move them to Jammu citing threat to their lives from terror attacks.

“Of the 6,000 posts advertised under the scheme, just about 1,000 have accommodation provided by the government. Most people are still living in rented accommodations and we don’t feel safe,” said an employee posted in Anantnag.

The J&K administration has said that by the end of September, 200 flats will be ready in Kulgam district, 100 in Sheikhpura and 150 in Baramulla. “Work has also picked pace in Anantnag. In the meantime, we have accepted the demand of 140 people to be shifted to the district headquarters in Anantnag,” the functionary said.

“The government is talking of moving employees to tehsils and safe houses, but Bhat lived in a migrant colony in Sheikhpura in Budgam district and he was shot dead in the tehsil office. This shows we are sitting ducks,” said an employee working as a teacher at Vessu.