On illegal encroachments, the district administration has adopted different yardsticks for people; DC Poonch needs to lead from the front on merit
SALIL RAINA
(POONCH TODAY NEWS)
POONCH: Poonch district administration was accused of double standard time and again on different matters of public importance, especially against illegal encroachments, and proving the allegations right, the officials of administration, the other day, in a complete one-sided act, demolished the sheds in the “Red Zone’ area by terming it an illegal encroachment.
The affected parties’ levelled serious allegations of partiality with a particular group while giving open support to other groups that have encroached on a large chunk of riverbed areas. However, the single-minded action of the administration has raised a big question mark on the intentions of those sitting at the helm of affairs, as locals said that the administration seems to have adopted different yardsticks for different people. It is important to mention here that after the 2014 September flood, the area was declared a “No Construction/Red Zone,” but over the years, with the hand-in-glove acts of various departments, the area has been converted into a full-fledged construction zone, thereby putting the entire Poonch city at risk if a flood strikes again in the future. Although the area was declared a “Red Zone”, how the various departments spent huge funds in the said area related to water connections, power connections, and likewise other related things Even the PWD road embankment and culverts have been encroached upon. In addition to this, the silence of the Irrigation and Flood Control Department over the encroachment of irrigation canals and natural water bodies is questionable. The deliberate silence of various departments over this big issue is a clear indication that those sitting in the administration have supported these illegal acts silently. There are authentic reports that a JKAS officer, earlier posted in RDD, approved maximum site plans in the said area out of the way, and it clearly shows how officers of administration silently helped the encroachers. As per civil service conduct rules, every government officer is duty-bound to implement government policies on the ground without an iota of partiality, but the previous and recently shown conduct of administration shows that some officers worked with a confused mindset. Those officers, who have a questionable past and currently hold important positions and are seen implementing decisions with a single mindset, have become a big threat to peace. An insider in the district administration, pleading anonymity, said that this “Red Zone” scam runs in several crores and various departments are involved in it, and if the government conducts an inquiry, the questionable intentions of various officers over the years will come to the fore in addition to misuse of funds, and if that happens, the credibility of the administration will suffer further. An impression has been generated in the town that the administration has been working with an uncertain frame of mind and that those who are involved in multiple land-related frauds at different places were never taken to task. But on the other hand, to throw dust into the eyes of the government and the people, cherry-picking actions are being projected in a big way through paid sycophants of the administration. The district has been facing a water crisis, a power crisis, and more crises related to public amenities, but the administration has failed to solve all of them. Encroachment of the main bazaar, illegal parking on main roads, no work on the circular road, and no proper master plan for Poonch City are some major issues that are still unaddressed by the administration. As the credibility of the administration is stumpy in the eyes of the common man, it is high time for the Deputy Commissioner Poonch, who has high energy levels, to lead from the front and direct the officers of district administration for performance-oriented output on merit and not on the basis of partiality, as alleged by the people.