Fifty-five years after they were separated from their homes and land in Himachal Pradesh to build a reservoir for the Bhakra Dam so that people living in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan could get water and electricity, 2,836 Bhakra oustees families (number has multiplies since due to division in families) still look towards the Haryana Government for their resettlement. Not to speak of providing basic needs such as pacca roads, clean potable drinking water, street lights and sewerage or drainage system to their localities, the government has failed to grant them proprietary rights of the agricultural land and residential plots which were allotted to them in lieu of their lands about five decades ago. The Bhakra Dam oustees displaced from 376 villages of Himachal Pradesh (110 from Una district, 256 from Bilaspur and five each from Mandi and Bilaspur) were given land and residential plots in 31 villages of the then Hisar district - 17 of those villages now fall in Fatehabad, 13 in Sirsa and only one (Rawalwas village) in Hisar. “Of the 2,836 residential plots allotted to the Bhakra Dam oustee families, proprietary rights have been given only to 969 in the past 55 years. Our people have been running form pillar to post, but there is no one who lends an ear to our woes,” alleged Baldev Singh, vice-president of the Bhakra Dam Oustees Association. He said out of the remaining 1,867 residential plots, duly completed conveyance deeds with respect of nearly 500 plots are lying with the Deputy Commissioner (Resettlement) for long, but to no avail. “Earlier, we were told that the problem was not being solved because the charge of DC (Resettlement) was with the DC, Hisar while a majority of our villages fall in Fatehabad. But now, for the past one year, the charge is with the DC, Fatehabad, but still not a single proprietary right has been signed in the past one year,” he said. Bhawani Singh, executive president of the Bhakra Dam Oustees Association, said while almost all roads in Haryana villages were pucca now, but streets of oustees’ localities are still muddy. The Bhakra Dam oustees have been demanding special development grants to be spent under their registered committees, relaxation in height in the Haryana Police as is given to Dogras during recruitment in the Armed forces, allotment of land at Fatehabad for a dharamshala, implementation of recommendations of a committee on petitions in the Lok Sabha for dam oustees, filling of posts in the resettlement office and removal of land encroachments in 12 villages of Fatehabad, Sirsa and Hisar. Fatehabad Deputy Commissioner Saket Kumar, who is also the DC (Resettlement) for the Bhakra Dam oustees, said he took the charge a year ago. “Since the issue of proprietary rights is old, the situation on the ground has altered due to encroachments. I have constituted a three-member committee to look into it,” he said. The DC said he would call a meeting of the oustees after January 26 to know their problems, so that a solution could be found. Other demands Special development grants to be spent under their registered committees Relaxation in height in the Haryana Police as is given to Dogras during recruitment in Armed forces Land allotment at Fatehabad for a dharamshala Implementation of recommendations of a committee on petitions in the Lok Sabha for dam oustees Filling of posts in the resettlement office Removal of land encroachments in 12 villages of Fatehabad, Sirsa and Hisar