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| SMC allows illegal constructions around Srinagar airport | | IAF’s concern on threat to national security goes in vain | |
Early Times Report
Srinagar, Oct 22: Despite threat to national security and recent directives from the Indian Air Force for restrictions on construction of buildings around the airport here, the Srinagar Municipal Corporation(SMC) is unmoved even as such illegal works have only intensified in the restricted zone.
Sources said in the wake of the recent orders from the Indian Air Force that construction of buildings and other structures within 100 meter area around the Srinagar Airport and 900 meter radius around any ammunition depot be stopped, the enforcement squad of the SMC is doing exactly the opposite.
Sources said some senior officials of the SMC enforcement wing, including ward officers held a "secret meeting" to decide on how to prevent action against illegal construction where they have taken money.
The sources said the officials subsequently approached builders undertaking such constructions to gear up the works to complete the constructions as early as possible.
In one such major violation, exactly at the main drop gate of the airport, the first floor of the illegal complex has been coming up for the past over a month.
Despite warnings from the security analysts that the construction will pose threat to the secured location, the divisional administration and the SMC not only allowed the work to proceed but in the latest told the builder to complete the work at an earliest.
"As soon as the Air Force Station Srinagar dispatched a letter to Deputy Commissioner Budgam seeking cooperation of the district administration in getting rid of the menace, the SMC enforcement squad got active as they have been grabbing millions in such deals where commercial constructions come up in fragile areas... They told the builder to finish the work at an earliest and to make the shops operational by hook or crook as otherwise they would have to demolish the structures," said an SMC insider in know of the matter.
As already reported by Early Times, as many as four mega malls are coming up illegally in Humhama area on the Airport Road, during the ongoing unrest, including two multistoried malls near the Humhama Chowk and two on road to Budgam near the CRPF camp, some 2 kilomters before Ompora. Even though Deputy Chief Minister, Dr Nirmal Singh who is also the Housing Minister, had directed the SMC to formulate a list of all illegal structures coming up during the unrest in the summer capital, the enforcement wing of the SMC ended up using the orders as a toll to grab more money from the builders. "While the SMC prepared a symbolic list of three odd dozen structures, hundreds of other such constructions, mainly malls were allowed to go on, only because they paid extra Chai Paani," said an SMC official, adding constructions around Srinagar airport were part of the same game plan. The Srinagar Airport is under the operational control of the Indian Air Force, which controls its air traffic and landing strip and also the facilities of fire-fighting and crash activities, apart from the airspace. The terminal building where the passengers check-in and check-out and the apron area, where aircrafts are parked, is however controlled by the Airports Authority of India (AAI).
In wake of the attack on the Pathonkote, sources said Indian Air Force sought tightening of security around the Srinagar Airport. |
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