KASHMIR and IDPs

Dr. K.N. Pandita

The Apex Committee-Pandit representative organizations interface began on 23 September 2009 in Jammu. We are sanguine the maiden meeting was conducted in friendly atmosphere. This marks the beginning of a long journey in which each step will have to be taken guardedly and never in haste.

One may presume that in this first session the official team will have, at least, got an idea of how much complex their task is. Obviously, to cope with 31 Pandit representative organizations and individual opinion makers, all with a wide and varied perception of issues and proposals up their sleeves, is a formidable task. This must have necessitated constituting a Steering Committee to drop out angularities of lesser or secondary importance and concentrate on the main themes of PM’s package. Maybe the teams of Pandit representatives, too, understand the tactical pragmatism of unifying their voice and forging their own steering body within o outside the Apex Committee. After all this has to be a long-drawn process.  Continue Reading…

By K.N. Pandita 

It took state government fourteen months to take the first small step in the task of implementing Prime Minister’s 1618-crore package for rehabilitating displaced persons from the valley.

There might have been more delay if the Prime Minister was not scheduled to visit the State this month.

An Apex Committee is constituted which, according to press reports “will monitor the return of Kashmiri Pandit migrants to the valley”. Passing reference has been made to one or two salient features of the rehabilitation package and this leaves much to guess.   Continue Reading…

By Dr. K.N. Pandita

There has been considerable increase in terrorist activities in Kashmir in recent weeks and months. We can recollect that in early spring this year, there were repeated reports of large number of well- quipped terrorists gathering at various points along the LoC, and also the international border to infiltrate into Jammu and Kashmir and other parts of the country along its western border.

Onwards of last spring, incidents of recurring militancy in the valley were reported. A terrorist captured from Gurez sector in spring last revealed that he was one of a group of a hundred militants who had tried to sneak into Indian territory but the attempt was foiled by alert security personnel. Continue Reading…