Latest news with #habitations
The Hindu
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Stalin requests Delhi Chief Minister to support Tamil families displaced from ‘Madrasi Camp'
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has written to his Delhi counterpart Rekha Gupta, requesting her to extend support for Tamil people in 'Madrasi Camp' in New Delhi, whose unauthorised habitations in Jangpura were being demolished by the Delhi Development Authority. The economically weaker section (EWS) flats in Narela, which were allotted to the displaced, were 20 km away from their places of work and were 'unfit' for occupation owing to incomplete provision of essential services, he contended. A delegation comprising Sriperumbudur MP T.R. Baalu, Tamil Nadu's Special Representative in New Delhi A.K.S. Vijayan, and Resident Commissioner of Tamil Nadu House in Delhi Ashish Kumar handed over the letter to Ms. Gupta in the national capital on Friday. The demolition of Jangpura's Madrasi Camp since June 1 has rendered 370 Tamil-origin families, who for decades have contributed significantly to Delhi's economy, homeless and destitute, Mr. Stalin pointed out in his letter. He further made four specific requests. He urged the Delhi Chief Minister to complete and hand over the 189 EWS flats to the entitled families, fast track construction of community infrastructure, and provide dedicated transport services. Mr. Stalin requested the extension of the EWS housing eligibility, under the Slum and JJ Rehabilitation Policy, to the remaining 181 displaced families by granting a special-case relaxation of income ceilings, domicile requirements, and deposit obligations. He sought the establishment of a provisional Tamil-medium schooling by sanctioning a temporary DTEA (Delhi Tamil Education Association) school at Pocket G-7 with immediate enrolment and dedicated transport, or by authorising Tamil instruction at a nearby MCD school with reserved seats and interim transport until permanent facilities were ready. Mr. Stalin requested for mobilising livelihood support through vocational training and micro-enterprise grants, especially for the displaced women. As per the Delhi High Court's orders, a joint survey certified 189 families as eligible for EWS flats, he said. The High Court had also directed the Government agencies (DDA and DUSIB) to complete all essential services like water, electricity, sanitation, internal roads, drainage and street lighting in Pockets G-7 and G-8, Narela where the alternative accommodation has been provided. The HC further mandated the Delhi Government to ensure immediate admissions for displaced children in nearby Government and MCD schools, establish Primary Healthcare Centres and Fair-Price Shops, and arrange requisite DTC and Metro transport links in accordance with the 2016 policy. 'Regrettably, although 189 families have been formally allotted EWS flats in Narela, the units remain unfit for occupation owing to incomplete provision of essential services. These sites lie nearly 20 kilometres from many beneficiaries' places of work, yet no dedicated transport services have been provided,' Mr. Stalin said. Educational arrangements for over 150 Tamil-medium children have not been implemented in accordance with the Court's directives. 'In the absence of these amenities, household earners—particularly women—remain unemployed and students face imminent disruption to their studies, compounding the dislocation distress of this vulnerable community. The remaining 181 families have not been provided any alternative accommodation and have been left homeless,' he added.
Indian Express
11-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
P Chidambaram writes: The Pahalgam payback
The terrorist attack on selected tourists in Pahalgam, Kashmir on April 22, 2025 required an effective, deterrent response. The question was, what level of response? There were jingoistic calls for 'revenge' and massive retaliation. Few people realised that the response could not be a full-fledged war between India and Pakistan. Prime Minister Modi had intervened during the early days of the Russia-Ukraine conflict and told the President of Russia, Mr Putin, on September 16, 2022, 'this is not an era of war'. These words had won Mr Modi warm applause throughout the world; in India, they earned him praise as a statesman and peacemaker. Several countries of the world remembered the words and privately counseled India. There were other reasons as well not to start a war: first, unlike the Russia-Ukraine conflict or the Israel-Hamas conflict, both parties in the India-Pakistan confrontation were nuclear powers and possessed nuclear weapons. Second, the world had become intolerant of war. The two major wars that are raging have consumed, so far, 13,000 lives in Ukraine and 50,000 lives in Gaza apart from hundreds of casualties in Russia and Israel. Another major war between two nuclear powers would have brought the world's stability and economy to the brink of disaster. Mr Modi realised these constraints and wisely chose a calibrated military response limited to selected targets. On Tuesday, May 7, 2025, Indian forces launched missiles and drones aimed at nine targets (4 in Pakistan and 5 in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir), and destroyed what are believed to be the core infrastructure of terrorist groups. It was a deliberately limited operation — both in scale and time — and achieved its objectives. It was a legitimate response of an aggrieved country. The Indian response did not target civilian habitations or property. Nor was it aimed at Pakistan's military infrastructure. As expected, Pakistan retaliated in the only manner it could have under the influence of the Army generals and the ISI — firing across the Line of Control (LoC). If Pakistan had started a full-scale war, it would have earned the opprobrium of countries including OIC. However, it would be naive to assume that the military bosses in Pakistan would not retaliate more aggressively in the ensuing days and weeks. Besides, it would be equally naive to assume that the three targeted terrorist organisations — The Resistance Front (TRF), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) — had been wiped out in the May 7 response. Their leadership is still intact and, in the past, they have demonstrated they are capable of throwing up new leaders to take the places of slain leaders. More importantly, there are young men in Pakistan who are willing to be recruited, trained and motivated to commit acts of terrorism in India including sacrificing their lives. As long as Pakistan's military bosses and the ISI rule the roost, the threat to India will not be over. In any conflict, it cannot be expected that one side alone would suffer loss of lives or military equipment. The government of India has admitted that some Indian civilians were killed in cross-border firing. It is sad and painful but, given the long border/LoC, some casualties are unavoidable. It is possible that India has lost some military hardware. Pakistan has made vain claims about shooting down aircraft but, in an interview to BBC, a stuttering and stammering Defence Minister of Pakistan was not able to give any evidence in support and cut a sorry figure. If the cross-border shelling spreads, despite precautionary measures, there will be more losses on the Indian side. War is pitiless. Under Mr Narendra Modi there have been three major incidents of terrorism in Kashmir — Uri, Pulwama and Pahalgam. After each incident, the government responded in a guarded manner. It appears the government has learned to speak and act more candidly and transparently: after the May 7 response, the government released maps and visuals. In a smart move, the government fielded two young women officers, one from the Army and one from the Air Force, to brief the media on live television. The nation watched. The only sour note was the absence of the prime minister at the all-party meetings held on April 24 and May 7. The people have also noticed that Mr Modi has not visited Kashmir after the Pahalgam attack; nor has he visited any of the families of the victims. The non-visit has drawn comparison with his inexplicable refusal to visit conflict-affected Manipur since May 3, 2023. On May 8, Pakistan changed tack and retaliated deploying missiles, drones and aircraft. India launched a counter-offensive, and targeted Air Defence systems at a number of locations in Pakistan. India called its actions measured and non-escalatory but Pakistan viewed them differently. I think the government of India has cleverly lobbed the ball into Pakistan's court and signaled 'if you want a war, we are ready'. The wise course for Pakistan would be to put Pahalgam and its consequences behind it, restrain the militants and wind down to an uneasy truce with India. The question is, who is in charge in Pakistan? Is it the shambolic civilian government under Prime Minister Shehbaz Shariff (brother of Mr Nawaz Shariff) or the Pakistan Army and ISI? Brace yourself for an uncertain future, tense border, war alerts, higher intensity conflict, cross-border firing, and military and civilian casualties. Difficult days are ahead.
