Bad roads proving fatal in Doda

Tribune News Service

Doda, December 7

Roads in twin districts of Doda and Kishtwar are the most important infrastructure in these hilly areas and not focusing on improving their condition means playing with the lives of the people.

Most of the accidents in these districts have occurred mostly due to the bad condition of the roads and a few occur due to the negligence of the drivers.

These roads were constructed either by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), which focuses on national highways, or by the Roads and Buildings Department of the Jammu and Kashmir government. Later on when the concept of Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna (PMGSY) came, rural roads were mostly constructed by an agency through contractors.

Once the PMGSY began, the road connectivity in rural areas of these districts improved and connectivity went above 50 per cent. Though it is still below average in the country but it has taken the road connectivity to the far-flung areas.

The R&B Department also takes care of the important road networks in the twin districts but both these departments (R&B and PMGSY) are not performing their duties with professional approach.

They have left the roads unattended and their conditions have deteriorated in the past few years and accidents on these roads have taken several lives. The authorities only believe in putting the work on papers instead of on ground.

During summers neither of the departments, R&B and PMGSY, initiate any process of blacktopping of these roads but when they feel funds will lapse and they will have to return the money to the government at the end of financial year, the blacktopping process is started during winter, when it is not feasible.

A couple of such examples are of Doda district where both R&B Department and PMGSY tried to blacktop the roads during winter after doing nothing during summer.

“The R&B Department had blacktopped the Doda-Bharat road on November 26, a day after heavy rain and snow had lashed the area, whereas the PMGSY authorities had started the similar process on the Doda-Bhagwah road on a rainy November day,” said Syed Riaz Ahmed, a local businessman of Doda.

The Doda Deputy Commissioner had taken action against the R&B Department and suspended a supervisor, but no action had been taken against the PMGSY authorities so far.