The fabulous idea of connecting the landlocked Kashmir with the rest of India through rail line was very much haunting policy planners for many decades in the past. But translating the idea into reality was not that easy though it was fascinating one.
Indian Railways had gained considerable experience of laying the rail line through rugged mountains in Konkan and they were now prepared to take up the project in Kashmir. Comprehensive discussions were held at technical level in the Railways Ministry and Railway Board and the scheme was through. But it was divided into three legs namely Jammu to Udhampur, Udhampur to Katra and Katra to Qazigund. Laying of railway line from Qazigund to Baramulla in the Valley was not a serious matter. Thus the work began and not surprisingly the Jammu -Udhampur link could not keep; the schedule of completion by 2003. In the same way, completion of Udhampur – Katra link also was delayed by more than seven years. Banihal – Qazigund link has already been established. What remains to be completed is Katra – Banihal link which is now underway.
Before we proceed to respond to the report of the Parliamentary Panel on the Katra-Banihal link, we would like to refute the criticism of some circles on the alleged slow progress on this link. It is true that the progress on this leg of the rail link has been inordinately delayed. But we need to focus on a couple of situations on the ground. Firstly, this leg is through most rugged and dangerous mountains of Pir Panchal that pose serious technical challenge. A number of tunnels have to be excavated, a number of bridges had to be built and above all a bridge on the Chenab at stupendous height had to be built which could be called the highest railway bridge in Asia. Movement of material for construction of the rail link was another impediment in the way that had to be surmounted. But the real issue that has caused much delay is non technical. It pertains to the acquisition of land which is entirely in the domain of the State Government. There has been inordinate delay in acquiring land belonging to the land owners of villages or areas through which the rail line had to be laid. Land acquisition is a complicated matter and in most of the cases the ownership is disputed and there is lot of litigation. But this is a legal matter and cannot be bypassed. Even now the dispute with land owners continues despite the land acquisition Act being in force.
In this scenario, we should not jump to the conclusion that the Railway engineers or contractors are to be blamed exclusively. The fact of the matter is that we have the top class engineers with much experience and they are a highly dedicated people. Now the Parliamentary Panel report has suggested a number of measures that should be adopted to ensure that the link between Katra and Banihal is completed by 2017. The observations of the Panel are very sound and should become the guidelines for the Railways Ministry and the Railway Board. For example it has suggested that there should be monthly monitoring of the success of the project and if any hurdles are encountered these should be removed without loss of time. The suggestion that the Railways Ministry should interact more effectively with the State Revenue Department is a very sensible. After all the Revenue Department is the disbursing agency and it is its domain to obtain the consent of the land owners. This should help in resolving the disputes and saving the time by pursuing the owners not to go in for litigation. But that can be done only when justice is done to them. The Panel report suggests that the Railway Board should recruit additional engineering staff so that the work is carried forward expeditiously.
In final analysis, we are pinning great hopes in this unique project that will bring out Kashmir from millennia old isolation and segregation. Bringing rail link to the valley also means that it opens the prospect for extension of the rail link to Ladakh. Once that is done, it will immensely contribute to the economic condition of the entire region of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh. This is not an ordinary enterprise that Railways have undertaken. It will bring about a revolution in all facets of life in the State. We are hopeful that 2017 will be the final call for the completion of the project for which people of the State have been waiting since so many years.
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