JAMMU, Jul 15: Approximately 900 registered families of erstwhile West Pakistani refugees (WPRs) in Kathua district have formally petitioned the administration for expedited grant of land ownership rights and the release of one-time settlement benefits. The community has expressed concern that numerous eligible families have yet to receive promised government relief, hindering their integration and security.
Information was available with The Chenab Times that these demands were voiced during a recent assembly convened in Kathua, under the leadership of Labha Ram Gandhi, the chairperson of the West Pakistani Refugees community. Gandhi stated that the lack of legal ownership documents for the land allotted to these families, including custodian properties, is a significant impediment. He urged the administration to prioritize the issuance of these crucial documents to resolve the long-standing issue.
The WPR community comprises families who migrated from areas that became part of Pakistan following the 1947 Partition and subsequently settled primarily in the Jammu, Kathua, and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir. According to community representatives, an estimated 5,764 refugee families made the journey to the region in the aftermath of the 1947 conflict.
Furthermore, Labha Ram Gandhi articulated concerns regarding the potential demographic implications for Jammu and Kashmir, particularly in light of recent developments in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). He implored the government to safeguard the interests of the refugee families, underscoring the need for policies that ensure their continued security and rights within the Union Territory.
The issue of land ownership rights for West Pakistani refugees gained administrative traction in August of the previous year. The Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Council, under the chairmanship of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, had approved a proposal aimed at conferring ownership rights on government land to families displaced from West Pakistan. This decision was intended to provide a framework for resolving the land tenure issues faced by these communities.
The current appeal from the WPR community in Kathua highlights the ongoing challenges in the implementation of such policies. The families are seeking not only ownership rights but also the timely disbursement of one-time settlement benefits, which they claim have been delayed for many eligible households. The community leaders emphasize that these benefits are crucial for their economic stability and social integration into the fabric of Jammu and Kashmir.
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The Chenab Times News Desk
