The Plight of Displaced Kashmiri Pandits

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Tue, 2 Jul 2002 01:01:21 -0400

"L. Suresh Kumar-LSK" <lsksuresh

The Plight of Displaced Kashmiri Pandits - Dr. Anuradha Mathu

 

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http://free.freespeech.org/manushi/124/pandit.html

 

MANUSHI/Issue 124

 

Sarkari Relief Brings Little Relief

 

The Plight of Displaced Kashmiri Pandits

 

Dr. Anuradha Mathu

 

It was about 12 years ago that Kashmiri Pandits, other non-Muslim

Kashmiris and even some Muslims were forced to leave their

homeland and come to live in the plains, on alien soil. Some have

migrated for good. Others still nurse the hope of going back to

their `nests'. Their lives have been uprooted and many live in

miserable conditions in relief camps or in makeshift

arrangements.

 

It is really heartbreaking to visit the shabby and unhygienic

camps of the displaced Kashmiris. An unusually high number of

people living in camps in Jammu have died due to snakebites,

heatstroke and unhygienic conditions.

 

A recent study by Neha Kachroo on the status of Kashmir's

displaced families living in government camps discusses the

present conditions and overall status of these lives lived in

squalor. Kachroo interviewed 110 families through random

sampling. A structured questionnaire, along with informal

discussions and general observations was used for data

collection.

 

According to her findings, a majority of respondents (93

percent) have been displaced from villages and only seven

percent of them were from Srinagar city. About 53 percent belong

to the age group of 45 to 65 years, with education up to

secondary school; 35.44 percent were involved in farming and

other allied occupations, besides private jobs, business and

government employment. Of the group, 98 percent were married; 82

percent of the families were male -headed and only 16.36 were

female-headed. The reasons for the deaths of their spouses

included lack of amenities in camps and health disorders like

kidney failure and snakebites. One person was murdered in the

valley. The average family size is eight people and 21.18 percent

of the families were nuclear.

 

The mass migration of Kashmiri Pandits came about in 1990.

Ninety-four percent of these respondents were displaced in the

same year and started their lives in camps which the government

had established in view of the exodus. Eighty percent of the

respondents did not have their belongings with them; 97 percent

did not receive any compensation from the government.

 

Approximately 53 percent of the respondents had lost their

houses, of which about 95 percent were burnt down. Five percent

of the respondents were forced to sell their houses under

pressure, due to financial distress. Nearly 96 percent had

possessed houses, of which 57 percent were damaged or destroyed.

 

Occupational trends of Kashmiri Pandits have also changed due to

displacement. Huge losses have been suffered by 35 percent of the

families who were in agriculture-related occupations; they are

now dependent upon government provided relief. At least 27

percent of the Pandits were in business. Initially, nine percent

of the families had private jobs. After displacement, this figure

increased to 16.36 percent. Those with government jobs

constituted 28 percent of the camp population. However, everyone

expressed frustration with the administration's response to their

various problems.

 

The infrastructural facilities at the relief camps are very poor.

The rooms allocated to the families have a maximum size of 15ft

by 15ft and a minimum size of 8ft by 8ft. These were allocated

irrespective of the size of the families. The area of the Multi

Camp- Phase Second, where the respondents of the present study

reside, had an open type of drainage. About 71 percent were using

community bathrooms and 89 percent were using community latrines;

86.3 percent of these were cleaned only once in a while due to

the irregular cleaning by safai-karamcharis (toilet cleaners) and

shortage of water. Besides, during the rainy season the open

drains cause problems, as dirty water enters the rooms of the

camp residents.

 

As far as the health conditions of the migrants are concerned,

about 60 percent of them reported that they suffered from

numerous ailments such as high blood pressure and psychological

problems. After displacement, 87.37 percent of the respondents

reported facing health problems due to a change in environment,

resulting from the move from a cold to a hot region.

 

About 67 percent of the migrants' children go to school, of whom

62 percent attend private schools and about 38 percent go to camp

schools. Though sending children to private schools is an

expensive affair for parents, sending them to camp schools is a

waste of time since the latter lack proper facilities, such as an

adequate number of teachers and classrooms, and other

infrastructural facilities.

 

The miserable economic condition of these people is apparent from

the fact that 70 percent of the migrants are unable to provide

for their financial needs. The migrants are forced to take short-

term loans from friends or moneylenders.

 

What are we to offer our future generations? Cultural loss is a

big issue for the community. While living in camps, families find

it hard to inculcate the traditional sanskars (values) among

young people. The emotional attachment of the migrants to their

motherland cannot be overlooked, as about 60 percent of them

still want to go back to their roots at any cost.