Pampore: Scores of residents in Wuyan village of Pampore in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district on Monday staged a protest demanding blacktopping of a busy road.
The residents raised slogans against the Roads and Buildings department and accused them for compelling villagers to hit the roads.
The protesting villagers blocked the road at Hergam Wuyan which caused traffic jam in the area.
Arshid Ahmad Bhat, a resident of Wuyan told Kashmir Reader that a portion of Srinagar Khrew road in Wuyan is in a dilapidated condition.
“It is an important road as hundreds of vehicles ply through it to reach industrial areas in Wuyan,” he said, adding that due to heavy rush the road suffered wear and tear and developed many potholes.
“The blacktopping eroded which turned the road into a dusty path.
The vehicles cause dust pollution while passing through the road causing nuisance for local population, ” he said.
He told Kashmir Reader that their demand is genuine and that deputy commissioner Pulwama must take steps to redress their grievance immediately.
Zahoor Ahmad, another resident of Wuyan, told Kashmir Reader that they staged a protest for blacktopping the road last week.
“Local authorities, AEE of R&B and Naib Tehsildar ,assured us that they will start work on the road in a couple of days after which we disassembled peacefully,” he said.He accused the authorities for playing delay tactics. “They didn’t bother to redress our grievance compelling us to hit the streets again,”he said.
The protesting residents said that they again raised the issue with AEE of R&B who asked them to talk to the concerned contractor.
The residents told the contractor making other lame excuses to delay the work. “His excuse is that he faces shortage of raw material, we are ready to provide him raw materials for the road,” the residents said.
The residents demanded higher authorities to look into the matter.
The protestors were pacified by a team of police officials and assured them that they will take the matter with civil administration. After the assurance, they dispersed and vehicles were allowed to ply again.
AEE R&B Pampore Mushtaq Ahmad said that they will be starting blacktopping of the road very soon.

BILAL HABIB