Stretch Tough & Hilly, Will Be Opened By Monday: CE PMGSY
Zaffer Iqbal
Uri, Feb 25: Two villages – Charunda and Batgran – along the Line of Control (LoC) in Uri sector in Baramulla district continue to remain disconnected from rest of the valley in the aftermath of massive landslides triggered by heavy rains last month.
A local delegation told GNS that the road connecting the villages was blocked on January 25, (2022) at Koli Nallah spot after several days of incessant rains. “The condition of the road continues to remain as such, as the debris is yet to be cleared out of the way to make it (road) through for traffic”, they said.
“We have been cut off from rest of the valley ever since”, they said.
Maintaining that it wasn’t however for the first time that the road got closed, they said every once it rains or snows, we have to witness a similar situation where local populace is left high and dry. “We face a tough time to ferry the essential supplies to our homes,” they complained.
Urging the department concerned to put an end to the issue, they further said, “Hope the authorities pay heed towards our genuine concern and see some permanent solution to it.”
When contacted, an engineer of the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) department in Uri said that the last five kilometers of Uri-Charunda road fall on the sliding area which gets closed due to falling debris even after cleared frequently.
“A revised (Detailed Project Report) (DPR) of this road has been sent to National Rural Roads Development (NRRDA). Once the approval for the DPR is approved, the road will be repaired again,” he said.
Meanwhile, Chief Engineer PMGSY Kashmir Tanvir Mir told news agency GNS that the road will be thrown open by Monday. “It will take at least three days to clear the stretch as it is tough and hilly,” she said.
“In the month of April or May, we will go for a thorough survey of the road involving the Department of Geology so as to look for the best option for this road and till then we have to maintain it properly,” she added.
It is pertinent to mention here that Charunda and Batgaran villages, falling along Line of Control, have a population of about 2400 people. (GNS)
