Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir National Conference on Thursday raised concern over “choking the livelihood” of people due to “irksome” security arrangements in wake of the ongoing Shri Amarnath Yatra.
Expressing deep disappointment over the stringent measures choking business activity and movement of people, the party’s additional General Secretary Dr Sheikh Mustafa Kamal asked the government to go back to the drawing board again and address the concerns of shopkeepers and others who are involved in business activities along the route of yatra.
“The need for foolproof security arrangements is well understood but certainly not at the cost of people’s lives. Never before have multi layered security arrangements been so irksome for the local people, who have although welcomed them with open arms. Today however people living alongside the routes of Yatra have been pushed to the margins. Shutting down of shops, halting vehicular traffic, including those carrying truckloads of edibles, and other necessary merchandise have caused massive inconvenience and losses to people,” Kamal said.
“Government needs to go back to the drawing board and attune the security arrangements to the daily activities of the populace living along the Yatra route. What little our traders, and transporters earn is during these ongoing summer months. Having them cease their economic activities will push them and their families to wall. Therefore, I hope that the concerned authorities will revisit the measures and ensure hassle-free food supply chains, normal public commute and economic activities,” he said.
Garrisoning of Yatra routes and unprecedented security alarm is worrisome. “We never witnessed such sensitisation and paranoia even during the nineties. Such measures run contrary to the claims of the government on the return of peace in Kashmir,” he added.
