Incessant rain, landslides disrupt road connectivity in Poonch

Our Correspondent

Poonch, July 27

Incessant rain and landslides during the last two weeks disrupted road connectivity in the district, causing great inconvenience to commuters. The temporary connectivity on the Pulast river along the Sher-e-Kashmir bridge was again washed away.

The Poonch-Mendhar road was closed and people had to travel miles to reach Mendhar. Various link roads were closed due to landslides. The roads leading to Poonch, Mendhar and Surankote towns were the worst affected ones.

The Poonch-Mandi, Poonch-Surankote and Poonch-Mendhar roads were severely damaged in many stretches, especially at Kalai, Surankote, Mankote and Mendhar. Potholes appeared on the Poonch-Mandi and Poonch-Mendhar roads.

Coupled with the collapse of protection walls, this made travel on many roads in the district hazardous. Small vehicles carrying pilgrims to Budha Amarnath shrine and Chhote Shah Ramkund in Mendhar faced the threat of getting trapped in ditches formed on rain-ravaged roads.

The worst sufferers were people living across the Pulast river because the approach road to Sher-e-Kashmir bridge over the river had already been washed away in September 2014.

Now the temporary connectivity was washed away, which compelled people to travel over 20 km extra to reach district headquarters.

“We think that Godis very much annoyed with the people ofPoonch district. Almost all the roads are in a bad shape. Many villages across the Pulast river have been cut off. Travelling on the Poonch-Mendhar road has become a difficult task due to its bad shape,” said Chaman Lal, a resident of Kanoyian.

“Poonch district has become hell for people of other districts. Those who visit once never want to come here again. Will it boost tourism in the district? Crores of rupees have been spent to boost tourism, but not even a single penny is being spent to repair damaged roads in the district,” said Anwar Khan, a lecturer.

The first batch of annual Budha Amarnath yatra is scheduled to arrive here on August 17, but there is no planning to repair damaged roads on the Jammu-Budha Amarnath road. The Divisional Engineer, R&B, was not available for comment.