₹144 Cr disbursed as border fencing relief in J&K
The chief minister said ₹155.08 crore has been allocated as compensation, out of which ₹144.12 crore has already been disbursed to landowners, with the remaining amount pending title verification
Chief minister (CM) Omar Abdullah on Monday admitted that border residents faced numerous challenges and assured to convene a meeting of MLAs from border areas in April to address their issues.
He also informed the J&K legislative assembly here that the government has so far disbursed ₹144 crore to the border dwellers as compensation for their land acquired for border fencing.
India has built an anti infiltration obstacle system along the 200km long Indo-Pak international border and 744km long Line of Control (LoC) to check terrorists.
Responding to a query by CPI (M) legislator MY Tarigami and supplementary questions from various MLAs , Omar described it a humanitarian issue.
“This is a humanitarian issue. There is no doubt that border residents face numerous challenges,” he said.
He added that following the conclusion of the session in April, a meeting with all border area MLAs will be held.
“After the conclusion of this Budget session, I will convene a meeting with all MLAs representing border areas along with officials in April”, he said.
The session will end on April 9.
The government will initiate whatever steps are necessary,” he said.
Several BJP members, including Vijay Kumar, Surjit Singh Salathia, Devinder Kumar Manyal and Balwant Singh Mankotia flagged the issues related to land compensation, agricultural activities by locals before fencing, and poor conditions of border hamlets.
During questions Tarigami and B Mankotia exchanged barbs.
Mankotia was acerbic to Tarigami for asking questions on border residents despite the fact that Kulgam constituency of Tarigami has no border.
Tarigami countered him by saying he can raise question about any area and Jammu does not belong to him alone.
The chief minister said ₹155.08 crore has been allocated as compensation, out of which ₹144.12 crore has already been disbursed to landowners, with the remaining amount pending title verification.
“We are not sitting on funds ₹11 crore remain unspent in the disbursement process. We will instruct the department to expedite the disbursement efforts on fast track,” he assured.
He said the border issue is not just one MLA’s concern but is a broader concern for people living in border areas, whether in Jammu or the Kashmir Valley.
Earlier, responding to a question from Hiranagar MLA Vijay Kumar, revenue minister Sakina Itoo informed that the BSF has acquired 13,415 kanals of land across 113 villages in Jammu, Samba, and Kathua districts of Jammu division for border fencing along the Indo-Pak border.
She said the BSF has laid fencing along a 135-feet wide strip in these border districts.
