Demilitarisation demand ironical: J

Churunda, Uri, Oct 20 (UNI) Jammu and Kashmir Governor Lt Gen (Retd) S K Sinha today again criticised those demanding demilitarisation of the state.

''It is ironical that some people want Kashmir to be demilitarised and the Army sent out. The armed forces have always done commendable work during natural calamities which had been appreciated by the people,'' he said while addressing the quake survivors of this village.

Gen Sinha lauded the measures being taken to rehabilitate the earthquake survivors, saying some of the villages have emerged better than what they were prior to the natural calamity.

Adding that the state government was striving hard to ensure that damaged houses were renovated before the winter.

The Governor lauded the Army for supplementing the rehabilitation efforts in a big way to improve the quality of life in the earthquake affected areas.

Churunda and Teethwal in Kashmir adopted by the Army have become model villages in every sense, he added. ''Teethwal and Churunda are today the best developed villages in the country.'' He was impressed by the renovation done to a 250-year-old mosque in the village. More than 300 houses in three villages, including Churunda, a few hundred metres from the LoC, had been renovated.

''Wherever I have been after the earthquake, the people were highly appreciative of the assistance provided by the Army during and after the catastrophe,'' the Governor said.

UNI AG DKB BD1632