The Union government’s decision to construct Shopian bypass road that connects the district on one side with Pulwama and on the other side with Kulgam has been appreciated by the people of the three districts particularly those affiliated with horticulture sector. Describing the announcement as a big potential boost to the apple industry, the growers said that the construction of bypass is bound to make the transportation of apples and other fruits easy besides resolving the chronic traffic congestion and thus significantly reducing transportation time. The people believe that once the construction is complete, it will revolutionize the horticulture sector in the three districts as besides apple, it will ensure that fruits with lesser shelf-life, like cherry, peaches and plums reach the mandis well in time and thus minimise the losses generally faced by the growers due to having no better surface communication.
It is worthwhile to mention here that the Union Road Transport and Highways Ministry has sanctioned Rs 224.44 crore to construct a bypass on the national highway in the Shopian district. The announcement was made by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari the other day. He said that an allocation of Rs 224.44 crore has been sanctioned for the construction of the Shopian Bypass on National Highway-444, transforming it into a 2-lane configuration with a paved shoulder. This development, spanning 8.925 Km in the Shopian district, will be executed using the EPC Mode.
The bypass will link Shopian District with Pulwama on one side and Kulgam on the other and is poised to significantly benefit apple growers in south Kashmir, particularly in Shopian district, known as the ‘Apple bowl of the valley’, by facilitating swift transportation of produce to markets. The Minister said that the overall impact includes improved connectivity and heightened road safety measures.
The roads and highways are the key to any region’s progress and prosperity. It is heartening to note that of late there has been constant focus on bettering the surface communication in Jammu and Kashmir. Lot of work has been done and is still being done on the Jammu-Srinagar Highway and as a result the people have started reaping the fruits of these developments. Once the tunnels are completed and the patch between Banihal to Ramban is taken care of, this road will really help both the travellers as well as business people in a big way. In this backdrop, it is hoped that the work on Shopian bypass is started soon and it is ensured that the project is completed within the given time frame.
