Cause of PoK refugees high on Modi govt's agenda: Jitendra

Jammu, Nov 12: Union minister Jitendra Singh today met a delegation of PoK refugees here and said that the redressal of their grievances is "very high" on Modi Government's agenda.

Singh, a Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), also urged the Jammu and Kashmir government to utilize Rs 80,000 Crore package "discreetly" and maintain an account of it.

"We hope that, as desired by the Prime Minister, the state government will utilize the package discreetly and maintain an account of it," Singh told reporters here today.

He assured the PoK refugees that their cause is "very high" on the agenda of the Modi government and the Prime Minister is very clear about providing whatever help and assistance required for a fair redressal of their grievances.

A delegation of PoK refugees led by Jammu Kashmir Sharnarthi Action Committee President, Gurdev Singh and Advocate Amrik Singh today met Singh and conveyed their gratitude to Narendra Modi for having announced the biggest ever financial package for J&K and also having earmarked fund for PoJK refugees.

They also lauded the efforts of Singh and said this package was possible because of his untiring efforts to project their cause in the true perspective. "If there is need for more money, the (state government) should formulate and send the report to Centre so that Centre also considers it", he said.

"It has been stated by the Prime Minister that there is no dearth of money," he said. The delegation has urged that the state government that his package should be distributed immediately, he said. The delegation has thanked the Prime Minister for the package for PoK refugees that such a decision has been taken after long time, he added.

In a meeting that lasted for over 45 minutes, the members of delegation discussed the various modalities of the package with Jitendra Singh and offered their suggestions about the mode of utilization of the funds.

A three-page memorandum presented to Jitendra Singh stated that all the Central and state governments in the past had left the issue of refugees unresolved, but Prime Minister Modi's announcement during his visit to the state on November 7 has kindled a ray of hope for all the displaced persons.

PTI