Amid the ongoing electricity crisis across Jammu and Kashmir, CPM leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami on Sunday demanded implementation of the recommendations of the Rangarajan Committee to handover the hydroelectric projects of NHPC to J&K.

Tarigami was addressing activists of CITU and Apple Farmers Federation who were demonstrating in Srinagar against “anti-people, anti-worker and anti-farmer policies” of the government.

Tarigami expressed serious concern over problems being faced by the common people.

“Kashmir is facing its worst power crisis in the last two decades and is reeling under acute power shortage, with people facing extreme inconvenience due to long and unscheduled power cuts at a time when temperatures in the valley have dipped to sub-zero levels. Hospitals are bearing the brunt of the crisis and industries as well as other crucial sectors are suffering too,” he said.

He said J&K is a direct victim of the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) with Pakistan and has been put to a disadvantageous position. J&K is made to bear a recurring loss of billions of rupees annually besides limiting its 15,000 MW power generation potential,” Tarigami said while urging the central government to compensate for these losses.

He said, “raising royalty from existing 12 per cent to 40 per cent in all central sector hydroelectric projects (HEPs) in the region is a legitimate demand which should be fulfilled if the union government is serious to streamline the precarious power situation in Jammu and Kashmir.”

The government must implement the recommendations made by the Rangarajan Committee to handover the two J&K based hydro-electric power projects to Jammu and Kashmir.

Ghulam Nabi Malik, farmer leader said that apples provide livelihood to thousands of households of Kashmir but apple farmers are in distress.

The major issue confronting the apple farmers is denial of remunerative price. They are being supplied with spurious pesticides, fungicides and fertilizers, which harm the produce and orchards instead of treating different diseases.

Another apple farmer, Mohamad Afzal Parry demanded 100 pc import duty on foreign apples, provision of fertilizers and pesticides at subsidized rates to apple farmers and cold storage facility to apple producing districts.

The crop Insurance scheme must be implemented at ground level under the supervision of the government.