SRINAGAR: The residents of Newa hamlet in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district have demanded a reconsideration of the government’s decision to establish an NIT campus in the area.
According to residents, the land proposed for the NIT campus comprises fertile apple and almond orchards, essential for their livelihoods and economic stability.
They said approximately 5,000 kanals of land belong to residents of at least eight villages, and its acquisition would render many families landless, creating devastating consequences.
“We have worked tirelessly for decades to develop these almond and apple orchards, which sustain our livelihoods,” said Abdul Rashid Lone, a resident of Newa.
He added that the land supports their children’s education and the community’s economic survival. Losing it would jeopardise their future.
Locals emphasised that hundreds of families depend on this land for their livelihoods, and rather than creating more empowerment opportunities, the government plans to strip them of the existing ones.
They called on the government to reconsider the project and safeguard the community’s economic rights, suggesting the identification of alternative land for the NIT campus to preserve their fertile agricultural lands.
Meanwhile, MLA Pulwama Waheed-ur-Rehman Para on Tuesday appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to relocate the proposed NIT campus to Tral.
“Prime Minister @narendramodi Ji, Newa Pulwama’s Kherwa land, a vital almond-producing area sustaining thousands of livelihoods, must not be used for the proposed NIT. We urge its relocation to Shal Dramun, Chetergam, Tral—6,000 kanals near a scenic hill, better suited for the project,” Waheed Para posted on ‘X’.
Earlier, Para had also posted, “Pulwama welcomes the establishment of an NIT, but seizing 5,000 kanals of land is unacceptable. Without fair compensation and guaranteed jobs for locals, this project will face strong resistance.”
PDP Chief Mehbooba Mufti’s daughter, Iltija Mufti, has also strongly objected to the acquisition of 5,000 kanals of land for the new NIT campus in Pulwama.
In a post on ‘X’, she wrote, “Grabbing land in Kashmir under the ruse of ‘development’ in J&K continues unabated. Pray tell what’s the need to seize 5,000 kanals of prime agricultural land in Pulwama to establish an NIT? If education was such a priority, why have a lopsided reservation in the first place?”
It is pertinent to mention that the government has initiated the process to transfer 4,834 kanals and 19 marlas of state land for the establishment of the new NIT campus in Newa.
The Deputy Commissioner of Pulwama has formed a team comprising Naib Tehsildars from Newa and Kakapora, alongside revenue staff such as Girdawars and Patwaris from Trich, Parigam, Patalbagh, Kangan, and Newa, to expedite the process of handing over the land to the NIT authorities. (KNO)
