Revoke sand extraction contract order within 7 days or face ‘agitation’: Apni Party chief Altaf Bukhari to J&K Admin

Srinagar, March 17, 2021: Expressing serious concern over the shortage of construction material in J&K and allotment of sand extraction contracts to non-domiciles, J&K Apni Party chief Syed Muhammad Altaf Bukhari Wednesday urged the Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to roll back the sand extraction order and give contracts of extraction and other construction material to J&K domiciles so that they could sustain their livelihood.

Bukhari, however, said if the UT government fails to revoke the sand extraction contract order within seven days, Apni Party leaders will hit streets along with the stakeholders.

Addressing a press conference at party office in Srinagar, Bukhari as per news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), said that it is the prime duty of the Apni Party to rake up the issues linked with the common man. “Today, we are taking up the burning issue of shortage of construction material including sand and Bajri. The reason is that under the garb of Supreme Court order has given the contract to outsiders, rather big crocodiles,” Bukhari said, adding that it is irony to see that sand tipper that would normally be sold at Rs 4000 or Rs 6000 to a common man is being sold at Rs 18000, that too illegally.

He said that one upon a time there were easement rights for the natives of J&K UT which seem to have blown with the dust. “We urge the government to restore the rights for the J&K citizens so that they continue their livelihood. With the illegal sand extraction and selling of other construction material, 5 lakh people associated with the business across the UT are on the verge of starvation. Today, we urge the government to roll back the sand extraction contract order within seven days or face agitation,” Bukhari said.

He said the Apni Party has a commitment to raise the issues confronting the common man. “While other parties are preferring silence, we can’t sit idle,” said Bukhari, who was flanked with senior party leaders including Muhammad Ashraf Mir, Ghulam Hassan Mir, Rafi Ahmed Mir and others.

Apni Party president said that the e-auction for extraction of raw material was held clandestinely without giving any wide publicity to the tendering process which has drastically resulted into exclusion of the local contractors.

“Now what has added to this fishy allotment process is that the successful non-resident J&K contractors are yet to fulfill the requisite terms and conditions especially getting environmental clearances. Despite these noticeable shortcomings, these contractors are indulging in illegal extraction of raw material through their sub contractors in connivance with the concerned departments,” he added.

Bukhari said the common people are suffering because of this mafia that is taking advantage of the government’s sheer silence and apathetic attitude. “It is highly unfortunate that the J & K government seems to be a mute spectator to this whole situation and on different pretexts the locals associated with this business since decades are being deprived of their inherent rights on J&K’s natural resources,” he added.

He said that the government must frame a comprehensive policy taking in view the Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand models wherein the rights of the locals on their natural resources have been safeguarded and insulated against the impact of e-auctioning process. Bukhari demanded that the government must regulate the prices of the raw material needed for construction purposes and ensure its hassle free availability in the markets.

“The shortage of raw materials like sand, bricks, stones, aggregate and gravel have not only caused immense sufferings to the general public but have stalled work on many prestigious developmental projects worth thousands of crores across Jammu and Kashmir,” he said—(KNO)