DH NEWS SERVICE
JAMMU, Aug 19
Dogra Sadar Sabha (DSS) held an emergent meeting of its executive body to deliberate on various matters of immediate concern. The meeting was convened by Th. Gulchain Singh Charak on his return from an 18-day visit to the United Kingdom.
The participants expressed deep condolences over the twin cloudburst tragedies in Paddar (Kishtwar) and Kathua districts of Jammu Division. DSS urged the J&K Government to provide the best possible care to the injured, ensure rehabilitation of those who lost their homes and property, and extend adequate compensation to the families of deceased victims, including employment to one family member where the deceased was the breadwinner. A two-minute silence was observed in memory of those who lost their lives in the tragedy.
The former J&K Minister also reminded the Government that several areas in Jammu Division have become highly prone to landslides after hill cutting for new road alignments. He reiterated DSS’s long-standing demand for constituting an expert body, on the lines of Uttarakhand, to survey fragile hill slopes along new alignments and identify vulnerable zones like Ramban, where frequent landslides and sinking of hill soil are reported. He emphasized that some villages may need to be shifted and rehabilitated, while experts must also recommend remedial measures such as soil preservation, construction of retention walls, and vigorous reforestation on a war footing. “This must be done on priority before a major tragedy occurs, as the situation is like a ticking time bomb with unpredictable heavy monsoons,” he cautioned.
Th. Charak also briefed the DSS Executive Committee about his recent visit to the British Parliament, where he met Mrs. Seema Malhotra, Hon’ble Minister for Legal Migration in the UK. During his stay, he also interacted with the Dogra community and associations in the UK, stressing the need for greater solidarity and engagement among Dogras settled abroad.
He further proposed convening a meeting of all prominent Dogra representatives from political, social, religious, and trade organizations at Dogra Bhawan later this month. The meeting will aim to exchange views and plan responses to various challenges faced by the local population, particularly those in border areas and residents along seasonal water channels and khuds prone to flash floods. He underlined the urgent need to strengthen and upgrade a well-equipped expert body for disaster management.
Details of the deliberations will be shared with the media after the proposed all-party meeting and subsequently taken up with the Government.
Among the prominent members present were Gambhir Dev Singh, G.A. Khwaja, Abdul Majid, Arvinder Singh Amn, Afaq U. Kazmi, Brig. M.S. Jamwal, Col. Dr. Virendra K. Sahi VrC, Dr. Nasib Singh Manhas, Amanat Ali, Shah Mohd. Shabir, Narinder Singh Jamwal, Rashid Ahmed, Salman Khan, Ravi Singh Slathia, Majeed Ali, Mohd. Ashraf Mughal, M. Naseem Malik, and others.
