Srinagar: Lieutenant Governor’s logic for halting the traditional ‘Darbar Move’, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Saturday said the decision had deeply hurt Jammu and Kashmir’s regional balance and administrative unity.
He was addressing a public gathering in Srinagar, after laying the foundation stone for the widening and four-laning of Boulevard Road from Nehru Park to Kral Sangri here. The project, executed by the public works (R&B) department at an estimated cost of Rs 19.94 crore, aims to improve road connectivity along Kashmir’s most iconic lakefront.
Speaking at the event, Abdullah reminded people that it was his government which had restored the biannual practice of Darbar Move as it is a “bridge of understanding between Jammu and Srinagar.” He said his government does not discriminate on the basis of religion, race or region.
“What was the compulsion to close the Darbar Move?” Abdullah asked. “This tradition is not the heritage of Sheikh Abdullah or mine. It existed before 1947, even before independence. When I saw that injustice had been done to Jammu city, I re-established the Darbar Move and removed that injustice.”
The chief minister said that those who scrapped the Darbar Move “divided the regions emotionally and economically.”
“The Darbar Move symbolised unity, not politics,” he said. “It ensured that both capitals shared administrative importance and development. By ending it, they broke that bond.”
Abdullah claimed that his decision to restore the Darbar Move was based on fairness, not political gains. “If I had to decide on the basis of religion or region, I would not have opened my office in Jammu — I didn’t even win elections from there,” he said. “But I did so because I believe in justice, not in division.”
The chief minister also claimed that Srinagar has not been given due attention for more than 10 years now, but “all wrongs will now be corrected and undone under our government”.
About Srinagar’s “developmental stagnation”, the chief minister elaborated: “After 2015, there were injustices and neglect. Let us find out which new project Srinagar got after January 2015 — in beautification, infrastructure, traffic management, or flood control? There is nothing. Everything stopped where it was in 2014.”
Citing examples, he said, “The bridge (Noor Jehan Bridge in Qamarwari) we started in 2011 took so many years to complete because work stopped after 2014. Before that, my government had launched a project to reduce traffic pressure on the Boulevard, but it remained only on paper after we left,” he said.
Abdullah also said, “The Gul-e-Dawood Garden — the Chrysanthemum Garden — was completed in just nine months. Couldn’t this have been done in the last nine years? In twenty years, only two gardens were built — the Tulip Garden by Azad Sahib, and now the Gul-e-Dawood Garden by us.”
He claimed that this neglect was not limited to Srinagar alone, even Jammu has not got its due over the said period.
“The neglect faced by both cities in the last 10 years will be set right by my government. We do not discriminate on the basis of religion, race or region,” Abdullah said.
The chief minister said the widening of the Boulevard stretch will not only decongest traffic, but also enhance the aesthetic and tourism value of the Dal lake precincts.
“Travelling on Boulevard Road has become tortuous — it takes hours to reach one’s destination,” he said, adding that the National Conference (NC) government in the Union Territory is planning a series of projects to decongest Srinagar’s road network and provide much-needed relief to residents and tourists alike.
Touching upon urban housing challenges, Abdullah said his government is seriously planning for decongestion and vertical-housing solutions in Srinagar.
“In one house, three to five families live together in Srinagar. After decades, a new housing colony has been completed, and work at Bemina will begin soon for the economically weaker sections.”
“Land in Srinagar is shrinking and we must now go vertical. Sustainable housing and city planning are top priorities for us,” he said, adding “we can’t create new land like Dubai or Muscat,” he remarked. “We will have to move towards eight- or ten-floor apartments to reduce congestion.”
Referring to the footbridge near the silk factory at Rajbagh, Abdullah said it was originally conceived as a motorable structure during his earlier tenure as chief minister, but was later downgraded to a pedestrian bridge “for reasons best known to the successive regimes”.
“We now plan to make it motorable again — a two-storey bridge with one level for pedestrians and another for vehicular movement,” he said, adding “it is our experience — the more bridges we make on the river Jhelum, the more we ease traffic congestion,” he said.
On the issue of flood preparedness, Abdullah questioned the utilisation of funds sanctioned after the 2014 floods. “Where is the money for dredging the Jhelum and the flood channel?” he asked. “Did dredging happen under the PDP-BJP government? Who was the minister then? Today, they raise fingers at my Deputy Chief Minister — but who ate that money meant for the Wular project? Open the files and show the truth.”
He said the government owes an explanation to the people for what happened to the World Bank funds meant for flood relief and mitigation. “Tell us, where did the money go? Who siphoned it?” he asked. “This year, just two days of rain created a flood scare. In 2014, floods came after seven days of rain. We were saved only because Allah stopped the rain. What has been done all these years for Srinagar city? It continues to be neglected!”
The chief minister said his government worked without bias or discrimination. “It is we who don’t look at religion or region. We work for justice and equality,” he said.
Emphasising his government’s welfare focus, Abdullah said, “We knew our sisters faced hardship in transport, so we provided free travel for women in government buses. We don’t make people wait five years — we work every day to fulfill our promises.”
“Our intentions are right, and faith in God. Those whose intentions are pure are never afraid of obstacles. We will work tirelessly to rebuild Srinagar, restore Jammu’s pride, and strengthen the unity that the Darbar Move represents,” he vowed.
