Sajad Lone calls for creation of separate body for rebuilding houses destroyed in shelling
Srinagar, May 17: Peoples Conference president Sajad Gani Lone on Saturday said that the government should create a separate adhoc institution for raising money to compensate the losses suffered by people in the recent shelling.
In a post on X Lone called for creation of a separate body to raise money for compensating losses suffered by people in shelling.
“It is my humble appeal to the government to please at the earliest create a temporary institution to raise this money from government and non -government sources, an institution which can tap corporates and civil society in the country. This institution would basically attempt to tap the CSR of corporates,” Lone said, adding that warmongers in newsrooms should be made to pay one month salary for this fund.
“And on a serious note, we should identify the most vocal war mongers in the newsroom and request them for a month’s salary,” he posted.
Lone said that it would be a matter of shame if affected families would have to spend a penny from their pocket to rebuild their houses.
“Till date I do not see any out of box strategy to fully compensate them. It will be a shame even if they have to spend a rupee from their pockets. The onus is on the country to rebuild their homes,” he said.
He said the border areas of J & K have faced the brunt in terms of massive collateral damage.
“Houses, shops and other buildings have been destroyed,” he said, adding that people have suffered immensely in these areas.
“We all went there, and one could sense the feelings of pain and fear. These have been terrible days with families fleeing relentless shelling. The young children are scared as their playfulness is snatched away from them,” he said.
Lone, who visited Karnah, Uri and Kupwara, said most of these families don’t have resources to rebuild their houses.
“Now these families face the challenges of rebuilding their lives. They have to rebuild their houses. And most of them that I visited and saw just don’t have the resources to build a house. It takes a lifetime for a poor man to build a house. That house is gone in shelling. Who will build it now? Will it take the poor family another lifetime to build a house,” he said.
He said their houses were not shelled because of personal enmity.
“Their houses were shelled because their country was at war. The costs of war have to be borne by the country. Why should costs of war be borne by the poor border residents, "he said. (KNO)
