JAMMU: Dr. Sheikh Mustafa Kamaal Additional General Secretary J&K National Conference travelling by Pooja express train to Ajmer has expressed his disappointment at poor up keep in the sleeper compartments and that running four hours behind schedule speaks volumes about punctuality of Indian Railways.
He said, “Modernizing Jammu railway Station was in the news but nothing is visible on the ground. As a first step this important Railway Station could do with a face lift and re-surfacing of the approach roads”.
Dr. Kamaal also welcomed the news that stranded Kashmir bound passenger at Jammu and at places on the Jammu Srinagar National Highway will be air lifted from Udhampur Army air strip.
He said, “It would have saved a lot of misery for the stranded passenger if this step would have been taken promptly which was the standard practice in National Conference Govts in the past”.
However, better late than never. This delay certainly causes misgivings in the minds of the common people that Govt both state and centre derive pleasure in exhausting the patience and money of the effected people and risking their lives before coming to their rescue.
He further has said that he had cautioned the Govt. that with poor and inept maintenance of this road we are waiting for a catastrophy to happen and that just seems to have happened this time at pathiyal the same place were road was blocked for forty straight days few years back.
“With the blockage having entered into its sixth day and prospects of its opening soon becoming increasingly grim and distant, the authorities would be well advised to open the Srinagar Uri-Chakoti road which goes alongside Haji Peer and the LOC right upto Nowshera in Jammu. It is a human issue and one must rise above all considerations in working out this arrangement with POK and Govt. of Pakistan as an immediate measure. This all important Jammu- Srinagar Rashtriya Rajmarg stressed to the limit is now cracking up fast. This arrangement may have to be continued so that serious efforts are made to deal with this road as one of the main reasons for its poor upkeep is the heavy round the clock vehicular traffic. Cross Loc Trade and Travel is already in place since 2005 taken by the NDA Govt. headed by Atal Behari Vijapyee and this new measure would be yet another feather in the cap of the BJP with credit also to Pakistan in no small measure. Thus to reduce the load on this road to the minimum the long standing demand of National Conference of treating Mughal road and the sinthan-Kishtwar road as National Highways should be accepted without any further delay. It is also incumbent on the State Govt. and GOI to fully compensate the stranded passengers on such occasion because they are made to suffer (by the Govt.) for no fault of theirs”, he said.
Dr. Kamaal was on way to Ajmer to pay obeisance at the Durgah of “Sultan-e-Hind Garib Nawaz Khwaja Moinuddin Hassan Chisit Sanjri (RA) accompanied by Mohd Farooq Mughal his political Advisor.
Dr. Kamaal expressed his Sanguine hope that smart city for Ajmer as announced by GOI an important place of pilgrimage with a worldwide following of Devotees will see the light of day soon. “This is the only way this historic city with survive and live on. It was disappointing to see nothing having changed much in Ajmer”, added.
