Suhail Bhat
Srinagar, May 5: Majority of lanes and by-lanes in South Kashmir’s Anantnag town are in deplorable condition despite the passage of nearly four years since they were dug to lay underground sewerage pipes under the AMRUT scheme.
The roads were dug up in early 2018 as part of Rs 17 crore Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT). The Urban Environment Engineering Department (UEED) dug up several major roads in the main town, causing residents to have difficulty commuting.
The R&B department eventually macadamized some of these roads after receiving numerous public complaints, but over a dozen interior lanes and by-lanes, including Kadipora, Sarnal, Mehman Mohalla, Qazi Mohalla, and Cheeni Chowk, remain in disarray, with residents blaming official indifference for the delay in repair work.
“For more than a year, the roads were strewn with potholes and masses of trash, and they were only fixed after repeated requests. Some interior roads, on the other hand, have been left unfinished, much to the chagrin of the general public, “said local Mehraj Ud Din.
According to a UEED official, the damages have already been reimbursed to R&B. “Right now, they are supposed to start blacktopping. Our department has already paid them for the damages,” he said, adding that the R&B department’s lax attitude was to blame for the delay in macadamization.
Residents have been disappointed by the administration’s failure to repair damaged lanes and by-lanes, with majority of them blaming the administration for failing to effectively implement the central projects. “What is the fun of improving one basic amenity at the expense of another more important one? We have been pleading with officials to repair our lanes, but they do not seem to care,” Samer Ahmad, a local, said.
He said since the tiles were removed four years ago, walking down the lane leading to their house has become extremely difficult, which speaks volume of the local government’s functioning. “It took four long years to repair the lanes and imagine how long it would take to build new one,” he said.
Executive Engineer Anantnag, Qazi Javeed, told Excelsior that they had issued tenders for the road repairs, which would start soon. “The UEED has paid an amount of around Rs 70 lakhs for the restoration work, and we have also issued tenders. The work will begin soon,” he said.
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