Rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits
Due to onset of militancy in 1990, most of the Kashmiri Pandit families along with some families of Sikhs and Muslims migrated from Kashmir Valley [total of about 57,000 families] to Jammu, Delhi and other places of the country. At present there are about 60452 registered Kashmiri migrant families in the country. About 38,119 registered Kashmiri migrant families are residing in Jammu and about 19,338 registered Kashmiri migrant families are living in Delhi and besides Jammu and Delhi, about 1995 families are settled in other states.
At present, the Government has been providing cash relief of Rs. 1650/- per head per month (maximum Rs.6600/- per family per month) plus dry ration (9 Kg. Rice, 2 Kg. Atta per person per month and 1 Kg. Sugar per family per month) to eligible 17,248 families living in Jammu. Expenditure in this respect (approx. Rs. 136 Crore per annum) is being reimbursed by Ministry of Home Affairs under Security Related Expenditure (Return & Rehabilitation) - SRE (R&R). The Government of NCT of Delhi is also providing cash relief of Rs. 1650/- per head per month (maximum Rs.6600/- per family per month) to eligible 3,385 families from their own budget. Other States are providing relief as per scales fixed by them from their own budget. The Government has advised these states also to provide relief at the rate of J&K State.
It has been the Government’s stated Policy to provide various rehabilitation facilities to the Kashmiri migrants and to create an environment conducive enough to make them return to the Valley. The Government has announced various Packages from time to time for the Kashmiri Migrants:
• Under Prime Minister’s Package 2004, 5242 two room tenements have been constructed in Jammu at four locations [Purkhoo, Muthi, Nagrota and Jagti] and have been allotted to the migrants, who were living in various one room tenements, Govt. Buildings, Temples etc. in Jammu. Further, 200 flats have been constructed at Sheikhpora in Budgam district (Kashmir Valley) and have been allotted to the migrants on sharing basis, who have joined the government service under employment component of Prime Minister’s Package 2008. Out of these 200 flats, 31 flats have also been allotted to the local migrants (who migrated from their native places to other places within the Kashmir Valley).
• The Government have announced a Comprehensive Package amounting to Rs. 1618.40 Crore in the year 2008 for return and Rehabilitation of Kashmiri Migrants, which provides for many comprehensive facilities for the migrants e.g. financial assistance for purchase/ construction of houses, repair/ renovation of damaged houses and dilapidated/ unused houses, construction of transit accommodation, Continuations of Cash relief to migrants, students scholarship, Employment, Assistance to the Agriculturists and the Horticulturist and Waiver of interest on unpaid loan etc. As informed by the Government of Jammu & Kashmir, one family has returned to the Valley availing the benefit of Rs. 7.5 Lakh for construction of house under the Package. Further, 1474 state government jobs have been provided to the migrant youths and 505 Transit accommodations have been constructed in the Kashmir Valley and allotted to newly appointed migrant employees. The review of such plans and packages is a continuous process and will continue to remain so in order to remove the bottlenecks and shortcomings, if any.
In the Budget of 2014-15, introduced in the Lok Sabha on July 10, 2014, Rs.500/- Crore has been earmarked for rehabilitation of Kashmiri Migrants.
This was stated by Shri Kiren Rijiju, Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs in written reply to a question by Shri Sunil Kumar Singh and Shri D.K. Suresh in the Lok Sabha today.
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