J-K education department shifts Kashmiri Pandit employees to safer places

The Jammu-Kashmir government begins reassigning Kashmiri Pandit employees to safer positions or locations closer to their homes.

Demonstrations in the Valley continue after the killing of government employee Rahul Bhat by militants.

The process of transferring employees appointed under the Prime Minister’s Package for the Rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits began immediately after Kashmir Divisional Commissioner Pandurag K Pole held a second meeting with heads of various departments.

He directed them to immediately comply with the government directive to shift the employees to safer places, according to officials in the J-K Education Department.

“We are looking at it on a case-to-case basis. We are trying our best to post couples in the same office or school. If that is not possible, we are trying to post them closer to each other,” an education department official said.

“We have transferred employees from far-off places, which are vulnerable security wise, to safer places like district or tehsil headquarters. In many cases, we have shifted them closer to their residence. The aim is to lessen the time and distance of commute for such employees.”

According to officials, Kashmiri Pandit employees have been assigned to safer district or tehsil headquarters or to areas closer to their transit accommodations.

Another official stated that while more than 50 teachers have already been transferred, more are expected. Teachers, laboratory bearers, and junior assistants are among those who have been transferred.

Bhat, a tax clerk, was killed by militants inside his Chadoora Budgam office on May 12.

The assassination of Bhat sparked widespread protests among Kashmiri Pandits, who demanded that they be relocated to Jammu or other safe locations.

The administration was forced to order an investigation by a special investigative team led by the deputy inspector general of police for central Kashmir after Bhat’s killing and subsequent tear-gas firing on a police protest sparked widespread indignation.

Almost 4,000 Kashmiri Pandits have taken jobs in the Valley under the Prime Minister’s Relief and Rehabilitation Package for Kashmiri Pandits.