Double standard of the Poonch administration on illegal encroachments indicates that law stands for poor people only;  DC Poonch needs to lead from the front on merit

Double standard of the Poonch administration on illegal encroachments indicates that law stands for poor people only;  DC Poonch needs to lead from the front on merit

POONCH TODAY NEWS

POONCH: Not one, but there are hundreds of examples where district administration was seen taking selective action on various illegal activities, and in that list, selective action against illegal encroachments and illegal constructions indicates that the law of the land is only for the poor people and not influentially strong people.

On many occasions, the Poonch district administration was accused of double standards, especially against illegal encroachments, and proving the allegations right, the officials of the administration, earlier, in a completely one-sided act, demolished the sheds in the “Red Zone” area by terming them illegal encroachments. 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,” 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. Likewise, activities have been carried out near Poonch Fort also, but the administration too adopted the pick-and-choose tactics against illegal encroachments. 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 ‘red zone’ 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 the administration shows that some officers worked with a confused mindset. An insider in the district administration, pleading anonymity, said that this “Red Zone” scam runs into 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 were projected in a big way through paid sycophants of the administration. 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 of Poonch to lead from the front and direct the officers of district administration for performance-orientated output against illegal encroachment and illegal constructions not on the basis of partiality, as alleged by the people.