Around 2,105 Kashmiri migrants have returned to Jammu and Kashmir since the repeal of Article 370 to take up jobs provided under the Prime Minister’s Development Package (PMDP), the home ministry told Parliament on Wednesday.
According to the government data, a total of 11 people from minority communities were killed in Jammu and Kashmir in 2017 followed by three killings in 2018, six in 2019, three in 2020 and 11 in 2021.
“The government has taken several measures to ensure safety of minorities in the Valley. These include a robust security and intelligence grid, group security in the form of static guards, day and night area domination, round-the-clock checking at nakas, patrolling in the areas where the minorities reside besides proactive operations against terrorists,” the home ministry said.
The government reimburses the monthly cash of Rs 13,000 per Kashmiri migrant family, which was Rs 10,000 in 2018, Parliament was told.
Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityananda Rai told Rajya Sabha that properties of 610 applicants have returned so far, and the government is “capable and making efforts to restore assets to Kashmiri migrants”. The District Magistrate has been designated as the custodian of the migrants’ properties, he added.
Asserting that Jammu and Kashmir is on a development track, Rai said the UT has received an investment proposal of Rs 51,000 crore for industrial development, which will help create employment opportunities for 4.50 lakh people. The construction of about 13 roads has provided better reach in the state. Before 2019, the speed of construction was at 6.54 km per day, which has increased to 20,68 km per day now. A village housing over 1,000 people is connected with roads, he added.
The ministry also said the construction of transit accommodations under the Prime Minister’s Reconstruction Package, 2008 is complete, while work is being done for houses under the PMDP-2015. “Construction of 1,025 units has been completed/ substantially completed, 1,488 units are at different stages of completion and work on remaining units has been taken up,” the MHA said.
In the initial phase, the private land was to be acquired for the construction of these transit accommodations, but due to cost escalation and delay in the land acquisition process, it was decided in 2019 to provide government land in order to speed up the construction.
On the issue of unemployment, Rai said 26,303 posts have been identified in the state since 2019, and the process of hiring is underway. A total of 841 appointments were made in 2020-2021 and 1,264 were hired in 2021-2022. The government is ready to give jobs to Kashmiri migrants who wish to settle back in their home state, he added.
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