|
25 years later, govt finds
peanuts for genocide victims
WSN Network
NEW DELHI:
Twenty-five years after the tragedy, the Indian government has
decided to extend the rehabilitation package to the victims of the
1984 anti-Sikh genocide in order to fulfil an assurance given to
Parliament.
A meeting of the
Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, gave its
nod to extend the package to the left out states and Union
Territories, for which an outlay of Rs 714.76 crore has been
earmarked. "It is possible that all relief supposed to have been
given to the victims has not been given, so it has been extended to
enable the Centre to fulfil its assurances given in Parliament,"
Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Minister Ambika Soni said.
The package was
meant for providing assistance to the Sikh riot victims in Uttar
Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Haryana,
Bihar,
Jharkhand,
Jammu and
Kashmir,
Himachal Pradesh, Orissa, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Punjab and
Delhi.
The main aim of
the proposal is to fulfil the assurance given by the government in
both Houses of Parliament on the report of the Nanavati Commission
of Inquiry into the 1984 genocide, which claimed nearly 3,000 lives.
Necessary
instructions would be issued to the state governments and Union
Territories concerned for implementation of the Cabinet decision,
Soni further informed.
| |
Unending wait may still not
be over
 Mohali:
Giving additional relief under the rehabilitation package
announced by the Centre for the victims of 1984 anti-Sikh
genocide may hit bureaucratic hurdles once again. Reason? A
number of victims have not been able to get the red cards, a
mandatory document required to get compensation. “Getting
compensation comes later. Getting a red card made is a
cumbersome process involving official rigmarole,” said Manjeet
Singh, a victim.
For many like
Manjeet Singh, a resident of Balongi, who saw his two brothers
being badly injured 25 years ago during the carnage in Delhi,
struggle to get compensation is far from over.
Gurcharan, one
of the Manjeet’s brothers, who was thrown inside a burning truck
by a mob, died a few months back and the other one, Tejinder
Singh, is suffering from spine injury.
 Despite
showing all the relevant documents and several rounds to the
tehsil office, Manjeet has not been able to get the red card. “I
applied for the card two years back. We are called and then
humiliated saying that the documents are not genuine,” said
Manjeet.
This is not an
isolated case. HS Kohli, a resident of Dera Bassi, got a query
from the district administration only after his plight was
highlighted in the media. “The government should verify all the
claims at the earliest so that the victims do not have to
suffer,” he said.
The Centre and
the Punjab governments have failed to ensure that the
compensation amount should reach the victims and not lost
midway. Jaswant Kaur Sarna, member of the Danga Peerat
Association said around 300 claims were pending with the
administration. The disposal of claims was slow and many
families were yet to get possession of flats from GMADA in Phase
XI, she said. (Adapted from a report in The Tribune newspaper.)
|
|
16
September 2009
|
Read Also