AJK government effectively tackle coronavirus outbreak: Masood Khan

ISLAMABAD, Apr 22 (APP):Azad Jammu Kashmir President Sardar Masood Khan Wednesday appreciated the steps taken by the AJK government and lauded the efficiency and effectiveness of its operations in tackling the coronavirus outbreak.
“AJK Prime Minister Farooq Haider Khan has timely convened an All-Parties Conference (APC) on the coronavirus lockdown in AJK”, he expressed these views while addressing the APC.
He said the whole world was facing a calamity of massive proportions, the likes of which were last witnessed during the breakout of the Spanish Influenza in 1918. The AJK president while thanking Allah Almighty said fortunately AJK had been least affected in all of Pakistan and till now we had no reported deaths from this pandemic.
He said the government of AJK had been working closely with national institutions like the Ministry of Health, National Disaster Management Authority, National Institute for Health and the Ehsaas Programme. Under the Ehsaas Programme Rs. 3 billion had been distributed amongst 248,000 deserving households.
He added that the AJK government had through its early disbursement of Zakat helped deserving families in these trying times and also effectively upgraded essential health infrastructure.
The AJK president praised the positive role of all AJK political parties in their support to the AJK government after the breakout of the coronavirus.
He commended the constructive role of the AJK Ulema who in all their meetings with the AJK leadership had vowed to follow prescribed SOPs, identify the deserving families and had also said they would help reach out to philanthropists across the liberated State.
They, he said, had pledged to raise awareness amongst the masses. “No sector, section of society will be targeted and all stakeholders are working in complete unison”, he said,
Masood Khan said the implementation of a smart lockdown will help effectively contain the disease but warned that the people should not assume that the danger had been averted.
The public, he said, should continue to adhere to precautionary measures prescribed by the State government. Economic activity, said the president, would be rejuvenated and financial impact of the lockdown would be assessed in detail by the government.
President Masood Khan said amidst the coronavirus lockdown many were either taking this issue non-seriously while many more were fearful and anxious over the outcome. “Hopelessness must be pinched and the political parties, opinion leaders and the Ulema can play a very positive role in this aspect”, he said.
The AJK president said in this time of distress we must not in any way forget the oppressed people of IOJK who are facing a dual lockdown, one since August 5, 2019, and the other, the coronavirus lockdown. Under the COVID lockdown the Indian occupation forces have intensified their repression in IOJK and are mercilessly killing innocent Kashmiris, he said, adding that only recently 4 young Kashmiris were martyred in Shopian.
Masood Khan said during this period of lockdown, RSS and BJP leaders and Indian military commanders have crafted three lies against Pakistan: first, that Pakistan is pushing corona patients to Azad Kashmir; second that Pakistan is sending the coronavirus patients to the Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir; and the third lie that Pakistan is sending militants across the LOC.
He condemned the peddling of these lies by India and said that they have done so to hide their war crimes and crimes against humanity in the occupied territory. He urged that we must unite and call out these propagandists who are spreading these baseless and malicious rumours.
He also strongly condemned the indiscriminate firing across the Line of Control under the excuse of insurgency from AJK. He said these claims are baseless and the world must take notice of these egregious ceasefire violations.
The AJK President said that while the world is fighting the coronavirus, the Indian government has implemented its Domicile Rule in IOJK so as to settle Indians from all over India in IOJK, grab the Kashmiris land, their employment and their educational seats. “This is a challenge for us and it’s our responsibility to keep the Kashmir issue alive on the international agenda. We must revive the communication bonanza given to us by the international media”, he said.