Banjar cut off, basic services disrupted but leaders turn a blind eye to crisis

Banjar subdivision in Kullu district is reeling under the impact of weather-related destruction. Local tourism stakeholder Hemraj Sharma says that the dire situation in the region was the result of inaction of the local political leadership.

Sharma expresses disappointment over extensive damage to Banjar’s infrastructure and basic services, while two of the area’s top political figures are engaged elsewhere. “One is busy taking stock of losses in Kullu and Manali with the Chief Minister while the other is sitting in Seraj with the former Chief Minister. Neither seems concerned about their own constituency,” he alleges. He is clearly referring to BJP’s Banjar MLA Surender Shourie and Congress leader and Chairman of APMC, Kullu, Ram Singh Mian.

Sharma says that while Banjar has thankfully not seen any loss of life so far, a blessing he attributes to the grace of the local deities, the region is suffering immensely in other ways.

“The Aut-Luhri highway (NH-305) beyond Aut is completely destroyed, cutting off the region. Even transporting patients to hospitals from remote villages of Banjar has become nearly impossible. The highway has been partially restored for light vehicles coming from Aut to Banjar. Beyond Banjar and heading towards Jibhi and the Jalori Pass, it is still blocked for traffic,” he adds.

Sharma says, “There has been no electricity for the past 10 days in the Banjar-Sainj area. Drinking water schemes have suffered severe damage, forcing residents to consume contaminated water, increasing the risk of waterborne diseases.”

Guman Singh, another tourism stakeholder from Banjar, says, “Areas beyond Banjar are cut off from the rest of the world and their status remains unknown. Road connectivity with Banjar was restored on Monday for light vehicles after 10 days.” He adds, “Roads in the region have been extensively damaged. The supply of ration and essential commodities has come to a halt. There are no walkable paths left.”

Sharma and Gurnam say, “The Revenue Department and local panchayats must work together to conduct an accurate damage assessment. Immediate restoration of mobile phone services is needed, along with the installation of solar-powered systems on towers to prevent future outages. The mobile phone services were restored partially in some areas of Banjar on Monday.”

They say that satellite phones should be provided for emergency communication. An emergency meeting of the departments concerned must be called for preparing a comprehensive relief and rehabilitation plan, with required resources and machinery allocated immediately, they add. “All stakeholders — government and non-government — must come forward to support the recovery efforts,” they assert.

They urge leaders and the authorities concerned to give priority to the people of Banjar during this time of crisis and ensure swift action to restore normalcy in the region.

KL Suman, Executive Engineer, National Highwary-305, says, “The road infrastructure in the region has suffered extensive damage. However, we have successfully restored road connectivity between Aut and Banjar for light vehicles. The restoration work on other roads is in progress. It will take some more days for the restoration of the road beyond Banjar, leading towards the Jalori Pass and Luhri in the region.”

Banjar MLA Surender Shourie says, “The road, power and water supply infrastructure in the region has suffered massive damage. There is an urgent need to provide adequate workforce and machinery for the restoration of the highway on priority and in a time bound manner.”