Kashmiri pandits 8

How the Defodills withered

It was only after the night between 19th and 20th January that  kashmiri  pandits  thought of leaving Kashmir for some time and to return, when the conditions become feasible  for them to live there again. They never apprehended that they are leaving the Kashmir for good. But I could observe that people were leaving for Jammu with out advising  their friends or relatives. Often I would see  empty trucks  arriving  in our lane early in the morning and people loading it with domestic luggage and leaving for Jammu. The  selective killings of Kashmiri pandits was going on with out any halt. The Gun culture had  started to begin in Kashmir. Intimidation of Kashmiri pandits had become a Key word  for terrorists. Fear psychosis had taken hold of KP's mind and misery was writ large on their faces. No body was able to open his mouth because of the fear of Gun. Militants could kill anyone at point zero range in order to ensure  his instant death. One mentally retarded Kashmiri pandit boy was killed in our street  by terrorists just to check their shooting ability. Any tom, dick or harry wielding the gun could create havoc and intimidate any brave man. The persons on the receiving end had lost their rationality under the grip of fear.
But the good sense prevailed upon the Kashmiri Pandits that  they left the Kashmir, otherwise they would have been the soft target for terrorists in Kashmir for so many years to come. They could only open their mouth once they reached Jammu. It was at Gita Bhavan Jammu that our leadership under the able and selfless guidance of Sh.Amar Nath Vashnavi took its form. People used to come from Kashmir in all sorts of transport, some with house hold goods and  others without it, and halt there for few days until they could find an  alternate accommodation. Some shifted to their relatives houses, who were residing in Jammu,   others found rented accommodations. Mostly people started living in camps temporarily created  at Purkhoo, Mishriwala and  Nagrota. The registration of  Kashmiri pandits .who had left kashmir was started by Government. at Jammu.  With the increase in day temperatures  in Jammu,  it was very difficult to stand in long rows for registration purpose.
Jammu was a temperate zone in J and K and Kashmir  was having  a nice climate in summers,  pandits of Kashmir were not accustomed to temperate climate. They started roaming, like in Srinagar , on the streets of Jammu in hot temperatures and many of them died because of  hot winds called' Loo'.  The Living condition of pandits in camps was  really deplorable. The large family was  living under a single  tent with no privacy and proper hygienic civil amenities. The rising temperature of Jammu in summers made the position of people living in tents more miserable.  Most of the elderly people, who could not  stand living under such conditions died and some people died because of snake bites and hot climate. The life was not worth living in such circumstances.
The life of people living in rented accommodation was not good either. Due to the  large demand for rented accommodations in Jammu, exorbitant rents were charged by the landlords. Even Go downs and semi finished houses in Jammu were occupied.  It was very difficult to find a suitable accommodation on reasonable rents in Jammu during those days. The large families living in one or two room small hutments with newly married couples and  children studying in higher classes created many psychological problems to  its dwellers. It created the segregation of joint  families and beginning  of nuclear families.
The old people among KP community were the worst sufferers. They enjoyed the nice climate  and company at Kashmir through out their life. But at the last stage of  their life they could not compromise with the circumstances. They suffered from  many physical and psychological disorders. They could not come out from the nostalgia of Kashmir up to  the last day of  their life.
The water scarcity in Jammu as compared to the abundance of water in Kashmir was another shock for Kashmiri Pandits. However, they had no other alternative but to compromise with  the circumstances.
With the migration  of many KP's to other parts of India and construction of their own houses in Jammu , latter on, solved  the problem of housing in Jammu.
The Govt. started giving free ration to the migrants ,which KPs were latter on  called ,and some nominal monthly doles to the business community among them. However salaried class was disbursed salary at Jammu until their further posting in or outside J and K, which gave a big relief to the community.
Some political parties like BJP also helped KP's by disbursing relief materials etc.to  them.
The Shiv Sena Chief Late Sh. Bala Saheb Thakhery also came to the rescue of Kashmiri Pandits at that time and allotted free engineering seats  in all colleges of Mahrashtra to their children every year, which was then followed by some other states also.
Last but not the least it will be ungrateful on my part if I will not mention the name of then Governer of J and K Sh. Jagmohan, who helped our community immensely in rehabilitation at Jammu.