Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, May 1: A delegation of Dogra Sadar Sabha (DSS), led by its President G S Charak (former Minister) and comprising of Col Karan Singh, G A Khwaja and Dr V S Sharma, called on Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo and expressed serious concern over the latest incidences of land subsidence in Pernote village of Ramban district.
Expressing shock over the extensive damage to the life, land, houses, power transmission lines and other resources and peoples’ property, the delegation regretted that playing with a fragile environment in the area has led to such a pass.
In their strong appeal to the Union Territory Government, headed by the Lt Governor Manoj Sinha, DSS condemned the indifferent attitude of concerned authorities to their repeated warnings against unscientific widening of Jammu -Srinagar National Highway between Chanderkote and Ramban, that is resulting in unabated landslides, sinking of land mass and damage to forests, houses, commercial establishments and even the human life.
Charak reminded that DSS had appealed a few months ago to constitute an Expert Committee for NH 44 to visit Ramban – Udhampur districts at an earliest to review the extensive damage being caused to houses and agricultural lands of hundreds of residents of villages adjoining the highways because of ad-hoc execution of works under National Highway Widening Project. This was considered essential to avert Joshimath like disaster in Udhampur -Ramban districts and it is unfortunate that the apprehension has come true, he added.
G S Charak said that he had personally visited the areas and found that accelerated and unabated landslides are causing irreparable damage to hundreds of houses, shops, commercial establishments and temples. Responsible people of Chanderkote -Ramban area have complained of execution of Project works, not by the officially engaged company, but by the unqualified contractors to whom the job has been outsourced by it, he added.
Charak said that the road construction companies must be directed by the Government to mandatorily engage the qualified engineers and other workers to prevent such kind of disasters. He also demanded that the LG , Chief Secretary and special teams from Government of India should immediately visit affected area to assure the suffering people for immediate relief measures.
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