Srinagar: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday appealed to Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw to operate special trains between Kashmir and the rest of the country for ferrying essential goods to the valley and transporting fruits to the terminal markets of the country.
The Jammu-Srinagar national highway has been closed following incessant rains and landslides en route, leaving hundreds of trucks carrying horticulture produce stranded.
“Our (railway) tracks are open. I will request the Rail Minister if two to four special trains can be operated for bringing in essential supplies to Kashmir and taking out fruit from here, people will get some relief,” Abdullah told reporters outside his private office here.
He said Jammu and Kashmir had suffered losses due to floods and its aftermath on various accounts and he expected that the Centre would compensate for these losses.
“Lives have been lost in Kishtwar, residential houses and shops have been damaged, government infrastructure has also suffered due to floods. Fruit was not damaged by rains but is rotting in the trucks due to closure of the highway,” the chief minister.
He said an inter-ministerial central team had come to Jammu and Kashmir for loss assessment after the visit of Union Home Minister Amit Shah for a first hand assessment of the situation in the wake of devastating floods.
“The Home Minister spent an entire day here. It is not as if no one came here …We expect that we are compensated for the losses we have suffered due to floods,” he added.
Asked about slapping of PSA against AAP MLA Mehraj Malik, the chief minister said it was unnecessary.
“Now what did he do to deserve a PSA? I fail to understand the reason for invoking such a stringent law, what did he do? Was there a law and order problem? Was there stone pelting anywhere? If the MLA had committed any mistake, it can be set right in the assembly under the supervision of the Speaker. PSA-like law should not have been invoked. This will fade the trust and faith of people in democracy,” he said.
Abdullah said the LG administration also made a mistake on July 13 by detaining leaders.
“On July 14, they made (another) mistake by using police to manhandle me,” he said referring to his visit to the Martyrs’ graveyard to pay tributes to those who were killed by the forces of Maharaja Hari Singh in 1931.
“On the contrary, there is no action taken against those who have vitiated the atmosphere here by playing with our religious sentiments. Innocent people are being harassed, they are being summoned to police stations,” he added.
Exploring all ways to open Srinagar-Jammu highway: CM
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Tuesday said the government was exploring measures to restore Srinagar-Jammu National Highway at the earliest, and was also probing long-term solutions to prevent its closure in peak seasons.
Abdullah made the remarks while interacting with a delegation of Jammu and Kashmir Fruits and Vegetable Processing and Integrated Cold Chain Association (JKPICCA) here, an official spokesperson said.
The delegation called on Abdullah at Raabita Public Outreach Office, and raised the issue of closure of the national highway amid the peak fruit season, he said.
The delegation sought immediate intervention of the government to ensure uninterrupted movement of fruit and vegetable trucks from Kashmir to mandis outside the Union Territory, the spokesperson said.
He said the delegation sought no arbitrary halts of their trucks, alternate routes, a transport corridor, priority movement status for fruit trucks, as well as immediate start of the railway cargo service to ensure faster transportation of the valley’s fruit produce to national markets.
The chief minister assured the members that the government is fully aware of the gravity of the situation and the national highway restoration is being monitored on an hourly basis.
He also assured the delegation that the introduction of railway cargo service for fruit produce has already been raised with the Union Ministry of Railways. Also, additional rakes have been requested from them for smooth transportation of fruit produce, he added.
The 270-km Srinagar-Jammu National Highway remained closed for vehicular traffic for the ninth consecutive day on Tuesday, with work underway on war-footing to restore a badly damaged 250-metre stretch in the Udhampur district.
The highway has been closed due to multiple blockades since August 26, when torrential rains, flash floods, and landslides hit the region. It was reopened for traffic for a few hours on August 30.
In total, the highway has been closed for 15 days since last month.
