Srinagar: After failing to come to the rescue of the people who got stranded for days together in the flood waters in most parts of the Srinagar and other valley towns, National Conference leaders including ministers are now again visible but with a different design. This time, these people are eyeing the relief material like free rice, drinking water etc. announced by the state government for the people at large. Reports are pouring in from different places that NC leaders have been pressurising the officers concerned with the distribution of relief, to handover the relief material to them instead of distributing it among the flood sufferers directly. In turn, the functionaries of the ruling party are reported to distribute the relief material to their party workers and supporters. There are credible reports received from almost all the city localities that genuine and deserving people have been left out and relief is provided to the blue eyed people of the National Conference. “We have not received any relief from any government agency and we are even yet to see the face of any official, though we have suffered badly”, said a resident of Barbarshah. He added that no rice was provided to the local populace and when they visited the CAPD office, they were told to write a formal application, counter verified by the local mosque committee. “But even after doing all this we have not been provided even a kilo of rice”, he said and alleged that “instead, bagful of rice is delivered at the houses of NC workers and supporters, after sunset”. Reports said that a top IAS officer overlooking relief operations in Kashmir, after receiving these reports strongly objected to the manner in which relief was being distributed on selective basis and on political grounds. At a high level meeting held here other day, the said officer is said to have complained that senior National Conference ministers are trying to influence distribution or relief material to the needy. Well-placed sources told Kashmir Monitor that the said IAS officer took on senior National Conference minister Ali Mohammad Sagar during the meeting that was chaired by the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. Sources say that the officer brought it to the notice of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah that senior NC Minister especially Minister for Rural Development Ali Mohammad Sagar was diverting the relief material that was coming from Centre towards few individuals and few areas. The IAS officer reportedly even gave few examples where in the relief had been diverted in violation on the prescribed norms. Under fire from the IAS officer, Sagar reportedly got upset and told the officer to mind his own business. But the IAS officer according to sources stood his ground and told Sagar that the relief material that was being brought from Centre was meant for everyone and not for few workers belonging to the ruling party. This is not the first time that NC Ministers have tried to influence the distribution of relief of disturb it altogether. Few days back another senior NC Minister Sakina Itoo had to face public anger in Pulwama when she got the administration to seize supply of rice arranged for relief purposes by PDP’s Dr. Haseeb Drabu. As soon as Drabu heard about the ‘illegal seizure’, he along with hundreds of PDP workers marched to DC’s office and took on the NC Minister for interfering in relief work. Sensing that the situation could get out of hand, the administration quietly handed back the keys of the seized store. The Minister then reportedly left Pulwama under extended security cover. There have been numerous other reports of relief being mismanaged including that a senior NC Ministers son making two to three daily trips to the airport to divert relief material to certain areas. According to another report, Finance minister Abdul Rahim Rather too has been indulging in selective distribution of relief material in his constituency, Charar-e-Sharif. Reports said that government trucks are unloaded in Badipora area of Charar and then loaded in private tippers and distributed among NC workers.
Posted on: Mon, 22 Sep 2014 17:15:43 +0000