Declare Jammu floods national disaster: Tarigami urges Centre

Srinagar, Aug 28: Senior Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Mohamad Yousuf Tarigami on Thursday demanded immediate relief for the flood-hit people in Jammu and Kashmir, and urged the Centre to declare the natural calamity as a national disasterIn a statement, Tarigami expressed his concern over the devastation caused by the unprecedented floods which have wreaked havoc on infrastructure, and agriculture, and left thousands of residents in displaced.”The horticulture and agriculture sector has suffered massive losses both in Jammu and Kashmir, particularly in Jammu, south Kashmir and Warwan areas. Farmers and orchardists have been hit hard.”Even small vendors in Jammu, who depend solely on daily earnings, have suffered damages. The government must immediately reach out to them and extend all possible assistance,” he said.Tarigami, who is MLA from Kulgam, said the tribal communities, including Gujjar-Bakerwals, have suffered heavy losses in the floods.”They lost a large number of animals, which are their livelihood,” he said, adding, the catastrophe should serve as a wake-up call.”Natural calamities may be unpredictable, but measures of preparedness are always possible. Unfortunately, successive governments and even society at large have ignored the fragile Himalayan ecology,” he said.”We have seen it in Kishtwar, Kathua, Vaishno Devi, and now in these unprecedented floods. Despite forecasts and warnings, there was little effort at prevention. This shows how deep the administration remains in slumber until disaster strikes,” he added.The CPI(M) leader said it has become a “routine bad habit” for the administration to wake up only in the aftermath of calamities, while much of the preparedness remains confined to “photo ops.””Our local vulnerability is worsened by poor planning, deforestation, and changes to natural drainage. We are now facing the serious consequences of a damaged ecosystem,” he said.Tarigami urged the government to treat the matter with seriousness, draw lessons from the devastation, and devise long-term strategies for disaster management and ecological conservation.