Rajouri: Thousands of inhabitants of around half-a-dozen villages close to the Line of Control (LoC) in Rajouri district have been anxiously waiting for the completion of a road construction project for the past 16 years.
The road was taken up under NABARD by the Public Works (R&B) Department (PWD).
Starting from Irwan Khanetar highway chowk, the road was to be built up to Tundi Trar village with a total length sanctioned under this project of six kilometres. It was meant to provide road connectivity to around six villages including Irwan Khanetar, Gambhir Patrara, Tundi Trar, Khankhari and Lower Panjgrian, which are located near Line of Control in Rajouri district.
Residents of the area said that road construction work was started in 2006-07. “Earth cutting work was kick started, however it was left after completion of the first three kilometres. The earth cutting work for the rest of three kilometres is yet to be taken up even after a gap of sixteen years,” they claimed.
They said that in the first three kilometres of this road, where earth cutting work was completed, the concerned department had then laid a single layer of metalling. “After that no work has been executed even after sixteen long years,” they lamented.
Naib Sarpanch Shabir Hussain told Greater Kashmir that these villages were still waiting for good road connectivity.
“But the road project started more than one and half decade ago was still hanging in the balance. Other roads, which were taken up with this road, were completed long ago. They have even been repaired twice or thrice but our road is still craving for the attention of the authorities concerned,” Shabir Hussain said.
Darshan Lal, an elderly man of the area, said, “The 3-kilometre stretch of this road, where earth cutting and single layer metaling work was completed long ago, is also in dilapidated condition strewn with the pot holes. In the absence of drains, we are not even able to ply vehicles on this stretch.”
“To and fro movement of our school-going children or shifting a patient to a hospital is no less than a nightmare,” Darshan Lal said. “We have approached all the concerned government offices with the request to complete this road but so far there is no positive development from any side,” he added.
On being contacted, Executive Engineer Public Works Department (PWD) in Rajouri division, Sadar Khan said that a DPR for this road project was already submitted. “The work for the road construction will be taken up after the process of tendering whenever sanctioned by the government,” he said.
“Directions have been issued to the concerned Assistant Executive Engineer (AEE) to take up road repair work for the already built stretch so that hardships faced by people are eased,” he added.
