By: Ibni Maqbool
Srinagar: An official report says that around 21000 kilometers of road length in J&K requires snow clearance.
The report, a copy of which is in possession of The Precious Kashmir, states that 21798 kilometers of road length in the Union Territory of J&K requires snow clearance. “The total road length of Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir is 39500 kilometers, out of which 21798 kilometers of road length requires snow clearance, “reads the report.
Out of these 21798 kilometers of road length, 17717.34 kilometers are in Kashmir and 4080.77 kilometers are in Jammu.
Besides this, the central agencies like National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), National Highway Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) and Border Roads Organisation (BRO) undertake snow clearance of road length of 570 kilometers.
The report was submitted to J&K government by a committee comprising Dheeraj Gupta( Principal Secretary, Housing & Urban Development department), Bipul Pathak( Principal Secretary, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj department), Shailendra Kumar( Principal Secretary, Public Works Department),M Raju( Commissioner Secretary, Jal Shakti department), Rafiq A Rafiq( Chief Engineer, PWD), Rashid A Dar( Chief Engineer, Mechanical Engineering Department) and Sami Arif Yasvi( Development Commissioner Works , PWD).
The Jammu & Kashmir government has accepted the recommendations made by the committee for optimal maintenance of roads during snow clearance.
It has authorized the Roads & Buildings department to implement the short -term measures suggested by the panel from its 2022-23 budget.
The government has also directed the Finance department and Department of Disaster Management, Relief Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Department to consider the implementation of long-term measures recommended by the committee in the next three years.
