KOTLI (Kashmir English): In a unique protest against the district administration, workers took to the streets with their donkeys in Kotli on Friday, demanding the lifting of the ban on extracting sand from the Poonch River.
These workers, who extract sand from the banks of the Poonch River on the outskirts of Kotli, took out a procession with their animals in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s Office and raised slogans.
In a video circulating on social media, a protester said nine of our men have been arrested unlawfully at night. “If we are not allowed to extract sand from the river, then what use are these donkeys…?” one worker said.
The protesters are demanding that employment opportunities should not be closed, as hundreds of families could become unemployed due to the ban.
Another said, “Some people who used to extract sand from the riverbank with us earlier have now bought vehicles and trolleys and are preventing us from extracting sand using donkeys.”
“We have been doing this work for decades. Now, by taking trolleys directly to the river, our livelihood is being destroyed.”
Urdu News, citing Deputy Commissioner Kotli Major (retd) Nasir Rafique, reported that some people used to extract sand from the river on their own. Since the Gulpur Dam was built, the river level has risen a bit, due to which some problems have arisen.’
The DC said, “Actually, this is a conflict between two groups extracting sand. Considering the possibility of a fight between both parties, some people have been arrested under sections 150, 151, and 167 of the Criminal Procedure Code.’
“These people used to extract sand without a license. Now we must determine the nature of the place from which they are extracting the sand. If it is Shamilat or Khalsa Sarkar Land, then they will have to get a lease from the government for this,” he said.
