Srinagar 12 June (KNB): Since the transfer of City Roads of Roads and Building (R&B) Roads Division to Srinagar Municipal Corporation (KNB) in November last year, people had high hopes that the most common issue in the summer capital of J&K that is dilapidated and non-macadamized roads will be eventually resolved.
The dilapidated, potholed and non-macadamized conditions of the City roads are troubling the citizens’ day in and out. Not only motorists but it has become difficult to even walk through several areas of the city, such as internal lanes of HMT’s Hokarsar area and Batamaloo, one of the largest residential areas in the city, just a few kilometers from the Civil Secretariat.
Residents of the internal mohallas/lanes of these areas have time and again raised the issue with the concerned authorities but barely any concrete step has been initiated so far.
A resident of Kawoosa lane, Hokarsar area told news agency Kashmir News Bureau that they walk on mud rather than supposed road.
“Plants have grown on the road which is the access for several number of households of the lane. Literally vegetation can be seen here and to reach out to the market or take our children and elderly out during emergency circumstances has become impossible,” he said.
He added, “We have to take every step carefully cause we don’t walk on road here but mud instead.”
The residents of the area told KNB that the project for macadamization of the lane road was taken up Public Works Department (R&B) in 2020 but after the transfer of inner lanes of Srinagar to SMC, they have not been informed or neither have they come across any development initiated or going to take place regarding it.
On 14 March 2020, Office of the Executive Engineer (R&B) Construction Division No. 2 Srinagar, had in letter allowed the selected contractor to proceed with the work i.e improvement of road surface at Kawoosa Lane. However, no such development took place.
In Batamaloo, there are several internal lanes in worst conditions causing utmost difficulties to the residents.
The residents of these area said that they had been left aghast by the concerned authorities apathy to alleviate their problems, resulting from depriving a basic facility like the provision of a proper road for quite some time.
One of the residents of Diyarwani locality, which lies near the famous Ziyarat Hazrat Sheikh Dawood Sahib (R.A) of Batamaloo, said that the internal road’s dilapidation has become a headache and big hindrance for the residents of the area as well as those travelling through to reach the court road. The elderly people, students and patients face a lot of problems as the road is not fit for walking or even to drive.
He said that a mere drizzle of rain turns the road into a pond of mud.
As per the locals, one of the officials had told them that there is drainage project that has to be initiated here and afterwards the road can be fixed.
Moreover, since the transfer of roads to Srinagar Municipal Corporation, people of the city had high hopes that once the construction/working seasons in the summer capital will arrive, work will thrive accordingly.
But now, the month of May has passed already and mid June is near about, authorities are yet to put their man and machinery to work and resolve the very basic issue of the Srinagarites.
Kashmir News Bureau made several attempts to contact Commissioner SMC Athar Amir Khan and know about the process of road projects but received no response. (KNB)