Two migrant workers were shot at by terrorists in Rakh Momin area of South Kashmir’s Anantnag district late Saturday evening. late evening, police said here. Both sustained injuries and were rushed to hospital for treatment. The attacks on migrant workers have become too frequent during past several months. These workers come to Kashmir to earn an honest livelihood besides contribute to the development of this place. As so many developmental projects including highways, other roads, railway-tracks, tunnels, health infrastructure, sports infrastructure and other such projects are under construction and the migrant workers the ones engaged in these projects. Therefore, the attacks on these workers are in fact attacks on the overall development of Kashmir. The enemies of peace, progress, stability and development are hell bent to derail this process by targeting the workforce. They want these workers out of Kashmir knowing that once they are out, all the construction works will come to a halt thus giving a setback to Kashmir’s developmental march. They are the enemies who just want the chaos and confusion to prevail here. The signs of normality have frustrated such elements and they have lost the sense of right and wrong. A migrant worker, who leaves his family behind and comes here to work is doing so to feed his family. These workers are just honestly earning their livelihood and are not part of any political scheme or machination. Targeting them is the most inhuman thing that has been happening here and should be condemned by one and all. While ensuring the safety of these workers is the primary duty of the UT administration, the local populace too has to play its role. They are the workers who are engaged in construction of peoples’ homes, business structures; they are working in their agricultural fields; they are helping them in their horticulture related activities. There need to be a close bond between these workers and local people and it is responsibility of the locals to ensure that those living in their respective vicinities are not harmed by anyone.
That said, there should be a proper mechanism of registering every migrant worker that enters Kashmir with concerned police stations. There may be some procedure of registering them with labour department but given the security scenario and risk to their well-being, they should be registered with the police station under whose jurisdiction they work and reside. Mostly, these workers live close to each other therefore the local police posts should keep a close eye on the surroundings and random patrolling too is a must to keep the evil elements under check. The police can also involve the local elders to create an atmosphere that wherever these workers stay, they don’t live under the shade of fear. People have to understand that though they work to earn their own livelihood, there work is what is helping accelerate our developmental march. In absence of these workers, all the developmental works here would collapse.
