Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Jan 4: A delegation of the Jammu Chamber of Commerce and Industry led by its president Arun Gupta alongwith Anil Gupta, senior vice president, Rajeev Gupta junior vice president Manish Gupta secretary general and Rajesh Gupta- secretary called on Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister of Road, Transport and Highways at New Delhi and briefed him about the concerns regarding the proposed construction designs of Katra-Delhi Express way especially Kunjwani to Narwal section and Kunjwani to Satwari section and submitted a memorandum.
Senior BJP leader Devender Rana, Seh Parbhari BJP Himachal State unit and Sham Lal Langer, ex-senior vice president JCCI, who were in Delhi also accompanied the delegation.
During interaction Arun Gupta said that J&K is currently experiencing unprecedented development and massive infrastructure projects are transforming the Union Territory, contributing significantly to its overall growth and prosperity.
He expressed that certain concerns and recommendations regarding the ongoing infrastructure development projects in J&K, particularly the Katra- Delhi Expressway. Gupta drew the attention of Minister to the proposed construction design of the expressway flyover between Kunjwani to Narwal, which includes the implementation of blind walls. Acknowledging the importance of infrastructure development, Gupta said the blind walls on both sides of the expressway may disrupt vital connections between shops, businesses and residences. He said the blind walls may not align with the current needs of the community and may cause inconvenience to residents, hinder emergency services, and impact the daily commutes of pedestrians.
He pointed out that the land use of this area is mainly commercial. Many commercial activities in the form of wholesale, Malls, Hospitals, retail, or small-scale services are carried out in this area. About 6 kms away from the project starting point at 515 KM +000, a wholesale fruit market, Mandi and garages for heavy vehicles, including bodybuilding units of trucks and buses, are situated. The project will impact 502 commercial establishmentscc (approx.), which include 365 shops, 10 Vehicle showrooms including private vehicles, construction equipment along with their service centers, 37 godowns, five Schools, 65 office spaces, 7 Hospitals, 5 Malls, and 8 shops in sheds in both Government and private structures. In addition to the commercial establishments, the impact of the livelihood would be on the households (HH) losing their shops.
There will be direct impacts on source of income for households losing godowns, as these are used only to support businesses; hence, losing them will result in a economical disturbance and inconvenience in storing goods. Thus, the loss of livelihood will be posed to 587 commercial establishments which implies for loss of income and which directly impacts the economy of Jammu. The portion from Kunjwani to Narwal encompasses residential and commercial areas, and we believe that a community-friendly pillar-based design for the expressway flyover would be more suitable.
“We wish to bring to your attention the livelihood of 65 shopkeepers are in great danger with the construction of proposed flyover from Kunjwani to Satwari section, upto the Government College for Women in Gandhi Nagar, Jammu. These shopkeepers, who have been running their establishments for over six decades, now face the threat of losing their livelihoods due to the proposed flyover design.
Understanding the importance of these businesses in supporting the local community, we earnestly request to consider a slight shift of the flyover by 1.5 meters to save the livelihoods of atleast 45 shopkeepers. This adjustment would not only preserve the economic stability of these families but also showcase the Government’s commitment to supporting local businesses.
JCCI sought the intervention of the Union Minister in this regard. Gadkari, then talked to the Chairman NHAI regarding the issues discussed in the meeting. He also assured that he will personally look into the issues and find out the solution regarding the above problems.
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