Riyaz Ul Khaliq

KL NEWS NETWORK

SRINAGAR

Gowhar Nazir Dar
Gowhar Nazir Dar

With the demand getting shriller that the paramilitary forces (CRPF) camp situated inside Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) factory at Zainakote in outskirts of Srinagar city be shifted, local lawmaker from ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has wrote a letter to State Home department asking withdrawal of the CRPF troops from the area.

An engineering student, Gowhar Nazir Dar (21), was killed in forces action on November 07 in the area with family and locals alleging that the CRPF personnel from the camp were involved in the killing. However, government probe is going-on in the youth’s killing.

MLA Batamaloo, Sheikh Noor Muhammad
MLA Batamaloo, Sheikh Noor Muhammad

“When Gowhar was killed, locals of the area approached me demanding removal of the CRPF cam and we wrote a letter to state Home department that there is no need of the camp in the area,” MLA Batamaloo, Sheikh Noor Muhammad, told Kashmir Life.

“There is a cricket ground next to the CRPF camp and many a times situation gets bad between CRPF men and youth,” he said.

Notably, member Parliament representing central Kashmir, and senior PDP politician, Tariq Hamid Karra, while condemning the youth’s death demanded immediate removal of the CRPF camp. He was seconded by independent lawmaker, Er Rashid, who visited slain youth’s home and asked state administration to remove the camp.

The Batamaloo lawmaker said that the CRPF camp was established on temporary basis and the demand of the locals is genuine. “HMT factory is defunct now and many times Srinagar-Muzaffarabad Highway is affected due to bad situation in Zainakote area,” Noor Mohammad said. “We are waiting response from the home department.”

The MLA further informed, “state government would have taken possession of the land under HMT watch factory but the union government wants that state government should also take possession of buildings constructed on it which is yet to be decided.” “That is why it has been delayed.”

Pertinently, Union government has already given nod to hand over 300 Kanal HMT land to the state administration and has one built-up area and residential quarters.

The HMT watch factory was set up in 1971 at Zainakote and subsequently the factory has become defunct.

The land falls within the Zainakote Industrial Estate. Reports said that the Industries and Commerce Department had suggested that the land should be handed over to it for industrialization along with the built-up area.

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