Dileep Padgaonkar
JAMMU: Maintaining that there was general agreement that the culture-focused dialogue on Jammu and Kashmir should be carried forward & indeed institutionalized, J&K Interlocutors today said that Round Table Conference (RTC) has strongly recommended cultural exchanges between J&K and Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK).
There (RTC) was general agreement that the culture- focused dialogue on J&K begun in Jammu-a region endowed with breath-taking ethnic, religious, linguistic and cultural plurality-should be carried forward and indeed institutionalized, Head of J&K Interlocutors, Dileep Padgaonkar told reporters here today.
Two-day round table conference – third in J&K -was organized in Jammu on 11-12 July to discuss pluralism and diversity in J&K in which nearly 60 participants, drawn from Jammu, Kashmir, Ladakh and Delhi, deliberated on challenges to diversity with great verve and candor.
The participants agreed that more than two decades of strife had taken a heavy toll on cultural life in the State.
Age-old traditions of tolerance and harmony had yielded place to indifference and at times, even to mistrust, he said.
“Participants, determined to reverse this unfortunate trend, made a number of specific, concrete and practical suggestions”, he said, adding “These included promotion cultural exchanges between J&K and the regions of state under Pakistan’s administrations (POK) and allow the exchanges of newspapers, periodicals and books between the two sides”.
“Other suggestions included allowing TV channels from Pakistan to be seen in J&K and allow people in the state to reach out to people on the other side (PoK) on the telephone,” he said, adding that “We will include these recommendations in our report”. .
The RTC recommended to bring together writers, poets, artists, painters, architects and heritage experts from all the three regions to a common platform in all the major towns and cities, he said.
The conference also suggested to take steps to nurture spoken languages in the state, restore museums and establish an art gallery in Srinagar, he said.
Giving details about their visit, he said, our tenth visit to J&K which concluded today took place against the backdrop of positive developments of peace prevailing in the state, especially in the Valley, he said.
Throughout June-July, an influx of tourists boosted earnings, and the Amarnath Yatra attracted pilgrims in a peaceful manner whereas cultural and sporting events organized in several parts here galvanized the youth, he said.
Besides, the peaceful panchayat elections, and an impressive voter turn out testified the faith of the people in a democratic governance at the grass-roots level, he said.
“All these factors taken together account for the fact that in every place we visited during this tour was not only unusually in large numbers but also with a heightened degree of optimism than October last year,” he said.
Road connectivity, education, health, and employment are among other issues which are high on agenda, Padgaonkar said.
Equally significant is empowerment of the panchayats to deliver effective governance in villages, he said, adding “let us also reiterate that the successful conduct of the panchayat elections cannot be equated with the main political issue in the State.” -PTI
