Shopian: More than 80 villages, including three Tehsil headquarters, continue to face hardships due to the deplorable condition of the vital road from Shopian to Bejbrahara, which is under so-called development since 2017.
This road is being developed for the past four years at an estimated budget of Rs 48 crore, of which only Rs 15 crore has been released so far, and that too has been spent on installation of pipes, bridges and widening.
For more than a year, the work on the road has been stopped. Officials of the Roads and Buildings department say that there are no available funds to spend on this road.
Locals from the area said that they are facing tough times since years and despite demonstrations, their requests have been thrown into bins.
“This is the worst kind of administration we have ever seen. On the one hand they are promising big developments and on the other hand they fail to provide basic services to the public,” said Ghulam Ahmad, a resident of Chitragam village which is situated on the same road.
Even cab drivers from the area have observed chakka jam on multiple occasions to demand repair of the road. They say their vehicles have been “destroyed” due to the bad condition of the road.
“We don’t earn that much which we spend on the maintenance of vehicles. We would have sold our cabs but there is no good market for them,” said Javid Ahmad, a driver who runs cab services from Shopian to Chitragam.
Many of the daily commuters who have their own cars take alternate roads to reach Shopian or any other destination after travelling 10-20 kilometers more.
Students, office goers and patients are the worse victims of this deplorable road. Students say they often reach school late as it takes double the time to reach Bijbehara where hundreds of students from the area study. Similar is the case with office-going people and patients, who have to brave through or altogether avoid the bumpy road.
Locals from Imam Sahib area said that the bad condition of the road has taken a toll on their business as well. They said that the condition of the road has only turned bad to worse, and very few customers now visit their market. “Nobody wants to break their cars or make their clothes dirty with all the mud and dust which has accumulated on the road,” said Sheeraz Ahmad Koka, a shopkeeper.
Villagers from Zainpora said that contactors have bulldozed the road at places where there was need of bridges, pipes or widening, and then left it in the broken condition.
Muhammad Ayub, Executive Engineer at Roads and Buildings department Shopian, told Kashmir Reader that there are still no funds for this road and they have brought the issue to the notice of higher authorities several times.
“It is being developed with an estimated cost of Rs 48 crore, of which only Rs 15 crore has been released. That amount has already been spent on it,” he said.
Deputy Commissioner Shopian Sachin Kumar Vaishya did not respond to calls and text messages from this reporter.

Raashid Hassan