* Reviews implementation of VVP
Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, May 22: Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo, today held a detailed meeting with NHAI, NHIDCL, Beacon and Project SAMPARK and sought reports from the executing agencies to furnish fortnightly reports about both the physical and financial progress registered in each project.
The meeting was attended by ACS, Forests; Principal Secretary, Finance and APD; Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir/Jammu; Secretary, R&B; Deputy Commissioners; Chief Engineers of PWD, representatives from NHAI, BRO, NHIDCL and other concerned officers.
The meeting took stock of progress made, so far, in completion of different National Highway projects across the length and breadth of the UT.
During the meeting, the Chief Secretary maintained that these projects are being monitored at highest level for effective implementation. He asked for furnishing the weekly reports to the PWD and biweekly to his office for regular monitoring of these vital projects for completion on time.
He enjoined upon these agencies to ensure that those responsible for delays should also be pointed out in these reports as the lackadaisical approach on anybody’s part would be viewed seriously and action initiated against the non-performers.
Dulloo asked for working in double shifts wherever necessary and assured of all possible assistance on part of the district and divisional administration.
Principal Secretary, Finance, Shailendra Kumar, while speaking in the meeting, impressed upon the concerned Deputy Commissioners to assist the agencies in identification of blocks for regular supply of the mining material required for completion of these vital road projects.
Some of the reviewed projects of NHAI included different phases of Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway, work on the tunnel being constructed on Ring Road Jammu, Ramban-Banihal section of NH-44, Marog-Digdol and Digdol-Khuni Make Nallah tunnels, Makarkot-Sher bibi viaduct and different phases of Ring Road Srinagar.
The road projects of NHIDCL included completion of Zojila Tunnel, Jammu-Akhnoor Road, Chenani- Sudhmahadev Road, Goha-Khellani, Khellani-Khanabal Highway and Singhpoora-Vailoo tunnel.
The projects executed by BRO under project Beacon and Sampark which came up for discussion included Srinagar-Baramulla-Uri Highway, Rafiabad-Kupwara-Tangdhar Highway, Surankot-Narbal Highway, Khanabal-Baltal Highway, Akhnoor-Poonch Highway, Shopian-Surankot, Rajouri-Thannamandi-Surankot, Budhal-Mahore-Gul Road along with others.
The assessed R&B projects included construction of Flyover Sanat Nagar, Srinagar-Budgam-Pulwama-Shopian-Kulgam-Qazigund (NH-444) road, construction of by-passes for three main towns of Pulwama, Kulgam and Shopian besides other road safety and strengthening works currently going on in different parts of the UT.
Meanwhile, Chief Secretary held a detailed meeting of the concerned to take the assessment of the preparedness of the administration for implementation of the centrally sponsored Vibrant Villages Programme Phase-II in the identified border villages of the UT.
The meeting besides Secretary, PD&MD was attended by the concerned Deputy Commissioners and other concerned officers of the Department.
The programme, spearheaded by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, aims to bring sustainable development, security integration, and socio-economic vibrancy to strategically significant border villages across India, including 124 villages in J&K.
In his remarks the Chief Secretary impressed upon the Planning Department to leverage this programme for transforming the lives and livelihoods of these border inhabitants in line with the vision of the Prime Minister of the country.
Dulloo also called for laying focus on the implementation of the programme by designating the Village wise nodal officers especially the SDMs of these areas for their smooth and effective implementation on ground. He called on them to assess the capacity of each village and utilize the schemes like HADP, Mission YUVA, Daksh Kisan, JKRLM etc to make these villages a model in agriculture, horticulture, skilling, tourism as per their innate strengths.
The Chief Secretary also directed the concerned Deputy Commissioners to take immediate actions to complete service and infrastructure gap analyses in close coordination with BGFs. He also emphasised upon expediting formation of District and UT-level committees for submitting the first batch of Village Action Plans to MHA within stipulated timeframe.
The Secretary, PD&MD, Talat Parvez Rohella while throwing light on different aspects of this programme gave out that a total of 124 border villages across 43 border blocks in eight districts of J&K including Jammu, Samba, Kathua, Rajouri, Poonch, Bandipora, Baramulla, and Kupwara have been selected for development. Additionally, four more vulnerable villages in Poonch district have been recommended for inclusion due to displacements from cross-border shelling.
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