1984 riot cases for compensation to be cleared by Punjab govt

Chandigarh, July 24 (UNI) The Punjab Government today ordered the clearance of all compensation cases pertaining to the 1984 anti-Sikh riot victims positively by August 31.

Presiding over a meeting of the delegation of 'Danga Peerat' (riot victims) led by its President Surjit Singh here Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal directed that all pending cases be settled to the satisfaction of the affected persons within this deadline.

The Chief Minister said that the applications which have been received by various Deputy Commissioners in response to an advertisement issued by the Revenue Department in June would be disposed off by the end of next month. Red cards would be issued to the left out eligible riot affected families to enable them to get the payment of Rs two lakh each as per the recommendations of the Nanawati Commission.

The Chief Minister said that all the decisions taken by the Sub-Committee on riot victims under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary would be implemented. He also directed the Secretary Housing and Urban Development to allot 327 booths at Dugri in Ludhiana to the eligible persons after due verification.

The Chief Minister also agreed to make payment of Rs two lakh each to 1500 persons who were holding red cards, since these cards had been issued by the Deputy Commissioners only after the verification with due diligence and there was no justification for re-verification. However, the proof of residence can be established after due verification by the competent authority, he added.

Responding to another demand of the delegation, Mr Badal ordered the issuance of ration cards to all the riot affected persons. It was also decided in the meeting to increase the reservation percentage from 10 per cent to 15 per cent for riot affected families for allotment of ration depots in the state.

Prominent among others who were present in the meeting were Revenue and Rehabilitation Minister Ajit Singh Kohar, Advisor to Chief Minister D S Cheema, Chief Secretary R I Singh, Financial Commissioner Revenue Romilla Dubey, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister D S Guru, Secretary Housing and Urban Development Arun Goyal, Secretary Revenue D P Reddy besides the Deputy Commissioners of Mohali, Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Patiala.

UNI