No headway on life cover for panchayat members of Jammu and Kashmir

Arteev Sharma

Tribune News Service

Jammu, June 11

The Centre’s assurance to cover all elected panchayat members of Jammu and Kashmir under the Rs2-lakh insurance cover has turned out to be a “mere announcement” as no headway has been made on the proposal till date.

Even the Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Department, which is the nodal department that deals with panchayat members, is unaware of any such proposal or progress made in this regard.

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In September 2019, the Union Home Minister Amit Shah had assured the panchayat members of Jammu and Kashmir that the government would provide Rs 2 lakh insurance cover to each and every panch and sarpanch in the Union Territory (UT).

The assurance was given against the backdrop of the killings of panchayat members in the Kashmir Valley by militants.

“This is the policy decision which is to be taken by the government. I have no idea (about the present status of the proposal). It would not be appropriate for me to comment on the subject,” Sudershan Kumar, Director, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Department, Jammu, said.

In the last panchayat elections held in December 2018, a total of 22,214 panches and 3,459 sarpanches were elected out of a total of 33,592 panch and 4,290 sarpanch constituencies. At-least 19 panchayat members have been killed by terrorists in the restive Union Territory since 2011.

“The fresh killing of sarpanch Ajay Pandita Bharti in south Kashmir has created a sense of insecurity and fear among panchayat members across J&K who are anguished over the government’s casual approach while dealing with their security. The Government of India had announced to provide insurance cover to every panchayat member, but it remained a mere announcement as no progress was made on it,” regretted Anil Sharma, UT president of the All Jammu Kashmir Panchayat Conference (AJKPC).