Message from the President
Between Ourselves

Namaskar &
Navreh Mubarak .

• Nadimarg Carnage: Yet another gruesome carnage in the 13-year long history of terrorist violence in Kashmir, has taken place after Wondahama and Chhatisingpora, when 24 members of the Kashmiri Pandit community were brutally murdered in the sleepy hamlet of Nadimarg in the Pulwama district of Kashmir, on the night of 23rd March 2003. The act is more gruesome than all previous acts, inasmuch as the innocent peace loving human being, men, women and children, aged and young, were forcibly dragged out of their houses at the dead of night, lined and showered with a rain of bullets, thus wiping out in a flash, almost half of the KP population in the village. It has also been reported that in acts of extreme brutality, the assassins disfigured the faces of the victims, and not only looted their houses, but also removed gold ornaments from the body of the dead women, this, in spite of the fact that a police post, to provide security to the KP families, was provided in the village itself. The absence of police personnel manning the post, or their being mute spectators to the heinous crime, speak volumes about the kind of security, the police can provide to the common people. 

 Words fall short of translating the deep anguish, fear and frustration of the Kashmiri Pandit community, who have been at the receiving end, right from the date when militancy raised its ugly head in the Valley in 1989. Since then, innumerable deaths have taken place at the hands of militants, and in most of the cases, the assassins were never tracked down and the files were closed. The Nadimarg incident also raises a big question mark on the efficacy of the new government’s resolve to bring back Kashmiri Pandits to the Valley, without having strengthened the security set up, as also the intelligence machinery of the state. This incident has invariably brought to a grinding halt, whatever steps the government had taken to shift a few KP families from Jammu to the so-called 'secured pockets', to show to the world that peace had at last been restored in the Valley. It should be clear to the governments of the day now, that the militancy only needs to be crushed with a heavy hand and that no piecemeal measures will provide any relief to the suffering people, or bring back normalcy.

• Annual Hawan: Like the earlier years, this year too, the Kashmiri Pandits' Association, performed Annual Havan, but at a new Venue – Vashi, Navi Mumbai. On behalf of myself & all members of the Board of Trustees, I wish to congratulate one and all who came from different corners of the state in large numbers. Their participation made it an all time success. We also thank our youth members who helped us in this endeavor which is quite praise worthy.

• Annual Fund Raising Day: The event held at Rang Sharda, Bandra, was totally conceived and staged by the artists available locally, a few of them having come from Pune. The Programme, which ran for more than four hours, comprised Variety in Music, Dance, Drama, Ballet, Satire and Comedy, and kept the whole audience spellbound till drop of curtains. A Souvenir was also released on the occasion. I thank all those who took pains, directly and indirectly, to make the whole programme a grand success. KPA is proud of all of them.

I thank all the advertisers for releasing their advertisements for our Souvenir and helping us to raise funds for the fulfilment of our Aims and Objectives. I also thank the biradari members, who toiled hard to seek advertisements from various agencies in this regard.

• Life-time Contribution Award: This year, the prestigious Life-time Contribution Award was conferred upon Shri Mohan Lal Bradoo, a senior member of our biradari. An example of self-made successful entrepreneur, Shri Bradoo, by his utter humility and self-effacing readiness to help community members, wherever and whenever need be, has earned him the epithet of a 'quiet and dependable philanthropist'.

• Mohan Lal Aima Music Awards and ZAAN Awards: This year, the Mohan Lal Aima Music Awards and the ZAAN Awards, which were scheduled to be given away on 
the Annual Fund Raising Day, were deferred due to the gruesome murder of 24 of our brethren at Nadimarg, Pulwama. These Awards will be given away on another day, for which the Awardees will be informed well in time.

• KPA Complex at Navi Mumbai: As already intimated, acquisition of a plot of land measuring 1000 Square Meters on concessional rates, somewhere in Navi Mumbai, through CIDCO is in the process. Necessary allotment in this regard, is expected to be made by CIDCO in a couple of months, after completion of the formalities. According to rough estimates, the land will cost about Rs.15 Lacs and the whole Complex, comprising a total built-up area of about 1200 Square Meters including a Stilt and a Community Hall, will cost 120 Lacs. The Project as a whole, along with its cost implications, was approved by the General Body, at an Extra-ordinary General Meeting held on 23rd March, 2003 at Kashyap Bhawan. Since, we need enormous funds for the Project, I appeal to the members of the biradari to rise to the occassion and help the Association, not only by paying their share of donation, but also make efforts to raise funds from other quarters. This no doubt, is a gigantic task, but I am sure, with the cooperation of all of you, we will be able to achieve our targets in full and in time.

• We welcome Maj. Gen. Tej Kaul and his family to Mumbai once again. Maj. Gen. Kaul has taken over as GOC I/c Gujarat and Maharashtra.

• Last month’s expansion in the J&K State ministry has given Shri Raman Mattoo a berth as Minister for Industries. We congratulate him for this assignment and look forward to his visit to Mumbai.

M. L. Mattoo
President