Jammu, May 30:(KNS) Lambasting union government for its continued hostilities towards the people of Jammu and Kashmir, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP0 Vice President Choudhary Abdul Hameed Sunday lambasted administration for its complete failure to meet exigencies’ during the current pandemic in the erstwhile state.
“Jammu and Kashmir has suffered worst during the present wave of COVID-19 due to the simple fact that those sitting in New Delhi have hardly any assessment of the ground situation”, Mr Choudhary said while addressing virtual meet of the senior party leaders and district president of Jammu region today.
After the feedback from the party leaders from all the districts the PDP Vice President said that it was clear that the administration especially at the UT level has failed to provide any solace to the people battling the pandemic and subsequent lockdown.
He said that health sector is the worst hit area and despite best efforts by the doctors and para-medics at the grassroots level the pandemic has only seen rising trends. “The cosmetic measures being taken by the UT administration were compounding the problem instead of helping to fight it. The hospitals at the district level have become referral centers due to the non-availability of adequate manpower and infrastructure”, he said.
Mr Choudhary said that despite public demand, the administration has not opened Mughal Road and Kishtwar-Sinthan-Srinagar highway for unknown reasons. “I have been told that the administration has deliberately kept these important highways closed and restricted the movement of the people from either side”, he said adding that opening of these surface links would provide an alternative to the people suffering from COVID to get required specialised treatment.
He said that the hostile attitude of the union government towards general masses of the Jammu and Kashmir was evident from the fact that hardly any measure has been taken from New Delhi to mitigate the suffering of the people. “Instead those at the helm of affairs are more interested to safeguard the interests of mining and liquor mafia”, he said.
Among others the meeting was addressed by former legislators MR Qureshi, Firdous Tak, general secretary Arshad Malik, state secretaries Mohammad Maroof, Satpa Singh Charak, RK Pardeshi, Rajinder Manhas, Sheikh Nasir Hussain, Shafiq Bhat and district presidents Ishtiyaq Hussain Waza, Tazeem Dar, Abdu Hafeez Wani, JD Singh, Ajaz Khan, Shabaz Mirza, Shamim Ganai, Javaid Iqbal Choudhary, Adv Showkat Hussain.
The participants alleged that the administration was not paying any heed to the demands and suggestions of the general masses and instead it was formulating policies without any consultation. “The gap between the administration and people has only widened in recent months further compounding the situation at the ground”, they said adding that in most of the hospitals there was no arrangement of ventilators and oxygen supply while at some places the machinery was lying defunct due to the non-availability of manpower.
They said that number of positive cases was much more than reported by the government due to the simple fact that in rural areas of the erstwhile state there is no facility of any testing. Only people reaching to the towns and district hospitals are able to get themselves checked and reported, they said.(KNS)