Kashmir Dispatch: Srinagar:
Monday, March 24, 2014.
Ninety one
patients with pellet injuries were treated in three years at Shri Maharaja Hari
Singh hospital one of the oldest medical facilities here, Jammu and Kashmir
government has said in reply to a Right to Information plea.
In reply to a
RTI plea filed by Hurriyat Conference headed by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, the
government said thirty six people among the ninety one people had received
pellet injuries in their eyes.
The RTI
mentions that there have been no deaths due to pellets in the hospital from
2010 to 2013.
“Total number
of patients admitted in our Ophthalmology department from 2010 to October 2013
are 36 (18 in 2010, 5 in 2011, 6 in 2012 and 7 in 2013). Out of these 27 open
globe injuries and rest were close globe,” the RTI reply said.
In a
violation of the state-run human rights commission's directions, forces
continue to use pellet guns to deal with anti-government protesters.
The RTI reply
said: “Overall 14 had no chances of regains overall eyesight on initial
examination. The fate of those referred outside sate is not known.”
Medical
sources say nearly 50 youth have permanently lost eye sight in the last two
years due to unbridled use of pellet guns by forces during pro-independence
protests in this disputed Himalayan region.
Besides
pellet guns, pepper guns, also used by forces to quell pro-independence
protests, have also wrecked havoc in the region, claiming many lives. This has
triggered massive public resentment in the region. Kashmir’s principal
opposition party - People’s Democratic Party - has also demanded ban on the use
of pepper and pellet guns.The federal government of Kashmir has justified their
use, saying that it is necessary to use them to maintain law and order. Experts
believe that use of pepper gas is a potential risk for fatal respiratory
illness.
The
large-scale use of pellet and pepper guns have drawn widespread outcry in
Kashmir. Observers say the method violates the basic norms of human rights and
must be banned.
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