Mandekpal Pampore residents demand lifting of ban on stone quarry
Demand intervention of LG, DC Pulwama
Pulwama: The residents of Mandekpal, Neyam Sahab and its adjacent areas in Pampore area of south Kashmir’s Pulwama district have demanded the lifting of ban on the stone quarry.
The stone quarry workers have demanded justice and revocation of the ban on stone excavation by the government.
They said that the excavation work at the stone quarry was stopped in the area three months back rendering hundreds of people jobless.
“The move of the authorities has left us jobless and compelled our families to starve. Authorities rendered us jobless as for decades we have been associated with this work. “Now what new trade can we learn and how will we earn our livelihood”, said a stone quarry worker.
“Our livelihood is being snatched. We all earn hand to mouth, and if the ban persists, where will we go? How would we feed our families?” asked another local.
The locals said that that they have been doing it for generations and had been earning their bread and butter from it, but ban on quarrying has brought them on the brink of starvation.
They said that the skill of stone carving which had been passed on from generation to generation had now been threatened and that they were forced to take other jobs wherein they lacked the skill.
“We have been visiting the offices of concerned authorities who assure us that they will be allowed to work very soon but nothing is being done in this regard,” he said.
Locals said that they have bought vehicles on loans with eye on quarry work but when it has been banned they are unable to submit their monthly installments.
They said that government must look into it on humanitarian ground and allow locals to carry on with the stone quarry work.
They appealed the Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and DC Pulwama to listen to their genuine demands and lift the ban on stone quarries there.
