Excelsior Correspondent
KATHUA, Mar 8: For any place, to develop and progress, good connectivity is a prime necessity which has been endorsed by our visionary Prime Minister by linking cities, towns and villages under Bharat Mala project. But, as the ill luck would have it, the 35 year old link between Basohli- Mahanpur has totally been ignored.
This link is a life line for the entire population living in Basohli and Bani tehsils of Kathua district. Not only the population of the aforesaid tehsils but a sizeable number of populations from the adjoining states of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh use the same link on their way to Lathua or Mata Vaishnodevi shrine.
The said link is too narrow and full of blind and sharp curves to escape from any untoward incident. Many times head on collision of the vehicles have taken place while majority of the vehicles on the road have slide down in the gorges while negotiating the curves. Many times the work on the widening and removing the blind and sharp curves was started but owing to the lack of political and administrative will, the road is still as it was 35 years before.
It is worth mentioning here that the same link has been frequently used by the MLAs of Basohli, Bani and Billawar as the same link connects their constituencies and their residences. The dilapidated condition of the link is proving a big hindrance in the tourism and trade of Basohli- Bani and the villages situates along it.
A local social activist Shiv Kumar Padha said that Basohli and Bani is bestowed with bonanza of beauty by the bountiful nature but owing to the discriminatory attitude, perhaps due to the non- representation, by the agencies the economies of these towns and villages have gone to the doldrums’. The market places give deserted look even during the prime hours of the day. Owing to the bad and dilapidated condition, due to the potholes, on the link the natives and the people from other parts of Basohli and Bani tehsils prefer traveling via Atal Setu and Punjab to reach Kathua and Jammu. The locals of the area requested to give attention to their long awaited demand by making the road wide and free from the blind and sharp curves.
Follow our WhatsApp channel