1947POJK DPs – First Victim Of Pakistan Aggression Still Hope To Listen Some Good

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A Look Through The Mist
Daya Sagar
The 1947 Partition of British India resulted in large scale migration of people of all communities not only from the either sides of the borders between India and newly born Dominion of Pakistan but the people of Indian princely states of India British Empire too had to suffer of  a lot of problems &miseries . The then princely state of Jammu and Kashmir of British India  Empire  that  acceded to India dominion on 26th October 1947 had to face the extreme possible onslaught of the Pakistan aided& abetted brutal aggressions. When the country was celebrating the freedom  from the British Empire,  a large population of  J&K  was mercilessly hounded/ forced  to leave their  homes in their own country and many killed by the Pakistani ‘invaders’. The areas occupied comprised of the then Mirpur District and a part of Poonch Jagir Jammu Province of J&K State, large part of Muzaffrabad District of Kashmir Province of J&K State and Gilgit / Baltistan parts of Ladakh region. Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, the then Prime Minister of J&K had named the uprooted local people of J&K as Displaced Persons vide order No. 1476-C of 1950 dated 16.12.1950whereas those who had left Jammu & Kashmir and gone to Pakistan ( West Punjab) on their own were termed as migrants. That showed the graveness of the conditions under which people had to leave POJK areas in1947.
The people who came from Pakistan / tribal invaded areas  (Mirpur,Muzaffrabad,Kotli, Bhimber,Sudhnati, Poonch- Rawlakote, Deva Batala , Gilgit , Baltistan, etc ) mostly took shelter in  safe areas in Jammu region or went to Punjab / Delhi / MP/UP/ Bombay etc. The horror days took away at least their three decades before they could recover from the terrifying memories and think of their future plans / ways/ means to recover the material losses they had suffered including the properties left behind by them. Imagine the extent of pennilessness, agony and helplessness of the DPs in early days in the ‘fact’ that some parents even got the age of their 3 year infant entered as 6 years or more just to get Rs. 10/pm as ration money per head( max Rs.50/month). Even that meager financial support by government for survival was discontinued after some time what to talk of increasing the scale.
Many may not believe but it is a hard fact that the families displaced from the areas that were ‘occupied’ by Pakistan ( POJK DP families) are even  after more than 70 years of their forced displacement  still struggling for  even getting the claims of their properties / assets left behind since they were  not been  paid the same  by government of India where as other 1947 refugees whom came from areas that were marked as new Dominion of Pakistan  to India Dominion were paid the claims of properties left behind in ‘Pakistan’. For the property and material that would cost Rs.1000 in 1947 the compensation was roughly estimated by me in 2015  as  at least Rs.22.22 Lac  just by taking 12 % interest annually compounded on cost equivalent and imagine what could be the amount in 2019.
Secretary to J&K Government (Rehabilitation -1974 Department), Jammu in response to views sought vide communication No. RS5 (18)/78-Com. II dated 27 July, 1979 by a Rajay Sabha Committee on Petitions (Persons uprooted from Pak occupied areas of J&K State ) had  Vide letter No. RAHAB-9/II/79 dated 27.11.79  summarized that (a) there was no agency to register these refugees immediately on their entry into the State  (b)  there  was no formal; registration of these DPs and the only considered registration is declaration forms filed in response to notice( by GOI)  inviting applications { only from those families who had moved out from POJK areas during Sept 1947 – Dec 1950, those whose income was less than Rs.150/pm ( later revised to Rs. 300 /pm) and those whose head of family too had moved out along with family} for ex gratia grant  [1960 –  Payment of Rehabilitation assistant to Migrants from Pakistan held areas of  Jammu & Kashmir State  under No. 10(15) Policy- I   / 59A  21-06-1960  Date 24-06-1960 GOI  Ministry of Rehabilitation  O/O Chief Rehabilitation Commissioner s/d Joint Secretary to the Government of India]. The number of total applications then received was 31696  and that accepted was 31619.
As per unofficial estimates may be about 40000 – 50000 families  had to  run for their lives in 1947 ( there was hardly any family who had not lost its kin) , some  found shelter in Jammu Province / Ladakh region of J&K and  a large number also went to other Indian States. Going by a likely number of even40000 families  in 1947 since no regular registration has been got done by State or central Government even in 1960s, the number of such displaced  may grown to over 1,30,000  to 150000 families by now ( 8 to 9 Lac souls) of the erstwhile  J&K State Subjects of   Class-I, Class-II and Class-III  ( Indian Citizens classified as  Permanent Residents of J&K as per Section-6 of J&K Constitution).
The present BJP lead NDA-II government has shown some interest for rehabilitation of these families in 2016. But that too has been with a   very casual approach. Even the half proposals sent by the then NC- Congress State Government under   No. Rev /rehab/08/2011 dated 20-10-2014  have not be accepted by Government of India what to talk of any improvement.
There is still time to correct the errors and make good the deficiencies atleast in the scheme / approvals conveyed by government of India on 22-12-2016  under  Prime Minister’s Development Package for J&K 2015 – Central assistance for  from POJK of 1947 and Chhamb displaced  persons of 1965 and 1971  to J&K Government. At least three generations of POJK DPs have suffered and in case Government of India / state government even now  takes to an humanitarian approach worth rationally takingto their genuine claims / demands   and starts a  composite exercise for registration / data collection  and estimation of claims  of  properties left behind in POJK  it would take a couple of years  for building the due claim figures  and  hence justice would be seen in paying  atleast on an  average Rs.50 Lac/ family as  on account payment to be adjusted in the final amount due since  even a property worth Rs.2000 in 1947 would value around Rs.50 Lac  in 2019.
A subcommittee  of a Parliamentary Committee on Action  Taken on 137th Report on Rehabilitation of J & K Migrants of Department  related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs  with Sh Rajiv Pratap Rudy MP as convener visited J&K  in 2013 September for interaction with affected people and State Government and the recommendations of committee  contained in ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY THIRD REPORT : PROBLEMS BEING FACED BY REFUGEES AND DISPLACED PERSONS IN J & K (PRESENTED TO RAJYA SABHA ON 22nd DECEMBER, 2014, LAID ON THE TABLE OF LOK SABHA ON 22nd DECEMBER, 2014)   did show  that the Parliamentary subcommittee had  to some extent in just  two days of interactions felt the pains of the families displaced in 1947  from the areas of Indian state of J&K occupied by Pakistan – POJK DPs1947 better than the State Government/ GOI  since even  that committee   had among other things recommended assistance of  Rs.30 Lac / POJK DP family as  well as even for appointing a nodal officer in Delhi for issuing  Permanent Resident certificates to POJK DPs living outside the State of J&K as is being done for 1989Kashmiri migrants J&K  and it was expected that  at least after December 2014  the requirements and demands of the  POJK DPs  would be appreciated by Government but even after that it  was so frustrating to note that Government of India under Prime Minister’s development Package for J&K 2015 communicated to  J&K Government ( Chief Secretary) under letter No. 31/01/2011-R & SO dated 22-12-2016  s/d by Director Rehabilitation ,FFR Division, MHA, GOI approval for  assistance of only Rs.5.5 Lac / family as “one time settlement” for 36384 families from POJK of 1947 and Chhamb displaced  persons of 1965 & 1971 where as even the NC-Congress  J&K  government  in the proposal sent to GOI  under   No. Rev /rehab/08/2011 dated 20-10-2014  for rehabilitation for one time full and final settlement of the claims of the POJK  displaced persons of 1947 and Chamb displaced persons  had  recommended Rs.25 lakh / per 1947 family. Not only the amount was reduced by GOI in 2016 to as low as Rs..5.5 Lac/ family ( even when no claims of the properties left behind in POJK  were paid to these families as were paid to 1947 refugees from Pakistan)  but so surprisingly  GOI even accepted only that part of  the 2014 – proposals of J&K government that had so erroneously / unceremoniously excluded 5300 families of POJK DPs though well  recorded in government files but staying in Indian states other than J&K from the list of beneficiaries  of Even Rs. 5.5 lac  one time settlement. So erroneously  the definition of 1947 Displaced  person as contained in the J&K Act No X 1971 has been used by the NC- Congress Government in 2014, by BJP- PDP Government in 2015- 2016  and  BJP lead NDA government in 2016 to exclude the 5300  families of POJKDP 1947  where as the said Act of 1971 was passed for entirely different purpose  could be well seen from the “ Statement of Objects and Reasons” appended to  and the scope as contained in different clauses of the J&K Act No X 1971 ( Clause -2, Clause-3,Clause-4, Clause-5, Clause-6, Clause-7 and   Clause-9  do reflect  that  the said Act was aimed at to address the issues of the families who were allotted evacue lands/ government lands and evacue properties in J&K without any ownership rights and such requirements did not exist for the POJK DP families that were staying  in other Indian states). Government had so irrationally excluded 5300 POJK DP 1947 families from 31619 families on record with government ( net 26319)  erroneously  making reference of  Act No X 1971 but at the same time added 10065 families of 1965 & 1971 Chhamb displaced persons in the list of beneficiaries  (?).
Not only that it is not out of place to mention here that even in the  183rd report of DEPARTMENT-RELATED PARLIAMENTARY STANDING COMMITTEE ON HOME AFFAIRS –   tabled in Rajya Sabha  on 22 Dec 2014  it was recommended (Para 3.2.12.3) that for granting State Subject to POJK refugees living outside the State the matter may be discussed with the representatives of POJK DPs for solution,  one nodal officer may be appointed in Delhi for granting Permanent Resident certificates to POJK DPs living outside the State of J&K as being done for Kashmiri migrants, a campaign may be initiated to attract more and more POJK DPs living in other parts of the country by issuing advertisements in national dailies and the rules for applying the Permanent Resident Certificate may be simplified.
The Parliamentary Committee had recommended to even locate  families that may be staying in other Indian states but not listed with government  where as GOI in 2016 had accepted the irrational proposals of J&K Government so as to even exclude  the known 5300 families  staying outside J&K ( proposals had been  drawn by state government  in 2014 with total financial  implications of Rs.9096 Cr for only 26319 POJK DPs 1947 families out of 31619 in record  plus 10065 of 1965/ 1971 Chamb Displaced families i.e. only 36384 beneficiary families out of 41684).    Ofcourse even  recommended assistance of Rs.25 Lac/ family  was reduced to Rs.5.5 Lac ( total from Rs. 9096 Cr to Rs. 2000 Cr ). So, much more needs to be done for these “First Victims of Pakistan Aggression”, the POJK 1947 DPs.
There were also  some very considerate recommendations as regards socio- economic support to be given to  POJK DP 1947 families that were contained in the proposals sent by NC- Congress State Government to GOI  vide No:   Rev /rehab/08/2011 dated 20-10-2014    and  to some extent as also contained in the ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY THIRD REPORT : PROBLEMS BEING FACED BY REFUGEES AND DISPLACED PERSONS IN J & K (PRESENTED TO RAJYA SABHA ON 22nd DECEMBER, 2014, LAID ON THE TABLE OF LOK SABHA ON 22nd DECEMBER, 2014). Will the J&K Governor take the initiative for review of the proposals and make fresh proposals for the consideration of GOI to revise the approvals conveyed to state government under No: 31/01/2011-R & SO dated 22-12-2016?
There is still time to correct the errors and make good the deficiencies in the scheme / approvals conveyed by government of India on 22-12-2016 under PMDP for J&K 2015 – Central assistance for   POJK DPs of 1947 (and Chamb displaced persons of 1965&1971). At least three generations of POJK DPs have suffered. Even if now  GOI / state government   take to an humanitarian  approach for taking to their genuine claims   and start a  composite exercise for registration / data collection  and estimation of claims  of  properties left behind in POJK  it may ld take a couple of years  for building the due claim figures. Hence  justice would be seen in immediately  paying  at least on an  average Rs.50 Lac/ family as  on account payment amount  since even a property worth Rs.2000 in 1947 would value around Rs.50 Lac in 2019.

(Daya Sagar is a Sr Journalist & analyst of J&K Affairs. dayasagr45@yahoo.com 9419796096)

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