The allotment of 5 marlas land to each one of the landless families for building houses of their own recently announced by the Lt Governor Manoj Sinha with a promise to bring under this scheme the bonafide residents of Jammu & Kashmir shows his commitment for the welfare and upliftment of the poor and underprivileged people who unfortunately did not get even housing facilities for decades together during the rule of more than a dozen popular governments of erstwhile Jammu & Kashmir state. Providing land for shelter to the shelterless people after decades of neglect shows the Lt Governor’s commitment to take the benefits of poverty alleviation schemes to the last person in the queue. Irrefutable fact is that Governments of yesteryears also used to announce housing facilities for the houseless families but ultimately their lackadaisical approach in implementation of such welfare schemes always left the identified beneficiaries at the receiving end. Ground realities show that several houseless families from Chattipadshahi to Nowhatta have taken temporary shelter in the vicinity of historical and archeological places in old Srinagar city as one such temporary settlement area here is known by the name “ Sheik Hamza Colony” and as such better it would be for the Government to begin the mission of houses for houseless from this historical area of old Srinagar city. In Srinagar not hundreds but thousands of families are houseless as records show that 18000 families in Srinagar are yet to have houses of their own and slum population in the city has already crossed 84000 magic figure. The figures are eye opener for those who ruled the erstwhile state for decades together as they their claims don’t withstand the test of the realities on the ground. Lt Governor announcing housing facilities for the poor and underprivileged and completing the mission in given timelines would surely change the perception of the people about the working of the Government . However bigger challenge still remains the implementation.
“It is not the issue of only providing land to the houseless people but also providing them minimum financial assistance for building houses which would take finally the mission of providing houses to houseless families to logical conclusion. Wrongs of the past if undone with the spirit of the mission of public welfare by the incumbent Government under the leadership of Lt Governor Manoj Sinha would surely open up a new chapter in the developmental journey of Jammu & Kashmir”.
Mission of providing houses to the houseless families if taken to logical conclusion would consequently remove the sense of deprivation from the hearts and minds of thousands of houseless families who unfortunately got sense of deprivation for decades together. It is not the issue of only providing land to the houseless people but also providing them minimum financial assistance for building houses which would take finally the mission of providing houses to houseless families to logical conclusion. Wrongs of the past if undone with the spirit of the mission of public welfare by the incumbent Government under the leadership of Lt Governor Manoj Sinha would surely open up a new chapter in the developmental journey of Jammu & Kashmir.
