First-time voters in Uri’s Lagama village seek development, equal opportunities

Uri, May 20: Siniha, a 22-year-old NEET aspirant and first-time voter from Lagama, Uri, a Hindu majority village, while highlighting the importance of casting a vote said she wants to ensure her community's legitimate share in development.

After casting her vote, Siniha said her village Lagama, which is 6 km from Uri town, does not have a proper drinking water facility and demands the same perks as provided to the Kashmiri Pandit community members who have migrated from Kashmir.

“We have been living here for centuries along with our Muslim brothers. Our bond is so close that we did not migrate despite adverse conditions in the past,” said Siniha.

She urged the administration to provide a special employment package for the Hindu community members of this village who have preferred not to migrate.

“Like the Kashmiri Pandits, the government should provide us with a special employment package,” she said. “The growing unemployment rate among our community members is a big concern.”

Madhu Bala, another resident of Lagama, also voted with the hope of securing basic amenities for her village.

“I cast my vote for better drinking water, reduction in power tariff, improved roads, and employment for our unemployed youth,” she said and expressed optimism that her vote would lead to tangible changes. “We have been getting polluted drinking water for years. There is no proper drinking water supply scheme, forcing us to fetch water from a polluted stream. This time, we hope our representative will respect our vote and address issues like drinking water and hike in power tariffs.”

Lagama is a Hindu-dominated village in Uri, known for its sizeable population of Hindu and Sikh voters. Unlike many Pandit families who migrated to Jammu and Delhi in the early nineties, the Hindu community members of Lagama chose to stay.

In a bid to facilitate smooth voting, the authorities established a pink polling station staffed primarily by women.

These staff members provided essential assistance to women voters, especially the sick and elderly, with a wheelchair readily available to ensure no voter faced difficulties while casting their vote.