news details |
|
|
| Summer capital fast turning into a slum: Mufti | | `NC treating Srinagar as bonded territory' | |
Early Times Report
Srinagar, Nov 11: Former Chief Minister and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) patron, Mufti Muhammad Sayed has accused the coalition government of treating the city of Srinagar as a bonded territory.
Addressing a workers meeting at Balhama in the Sonwar constituency here he said the share of Srinagar District had got reduced from 5.83% in 2006-07 to 3.29% in 2012-13 within the District Plan of the State.
Mufti said Srinagar is crumbling as the infrastructure development was not at all keeping pace with the pressures of increasing urbanisation and tourist inflow.
He said 95% of Srinagar dwellings are unplanned leading to choking and other social problems. "The city was turning into a virtual slum. Only last year the government had diverted funds amounting to Rs 48 crore under Central Road Fund (CRF) and none of the legislators had even raised the issue, not to speak of the chief minister who actually ordered it as minister incharge of R&B", he said.
Mufti said though the ten legislators from Srinagar and Ganderbal districts were crucial to NC's survival in power, the party had taken the residents there for granted, considering that there would always be boycott in elections and they could run away with results in their favour. "The legislators and MP from Srinagar were paying only lip service to the city", he said.
Referring to the four laning of Srinagar Jammu Highway Mufti said even though it had been approved by the former prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee it had failed to take off beyond Pantchhokh for lack of follow up by the state government.
Mufti said the new spaces created by the previous government as part of the beautification of river Jehlum had added to the beauty of the city but the NC led government failed in carrying it forward. Instead of extending the beautification program as originally envisaged it was now trying to undo it by implementing silly projects like the skewed bridge. He said it would destroy the only pedestrian mall left in the city which had over the centuries acquired an iconic aura among tourists and travellers as The Bund Srinagar was considered as one on the most attractive addresses east of Suez.
Terming the claims of government about development of Srinagar as false and misleading, Mufti said the city was still at a stage of growth where patch work on roads or fixing of a lighting post was projected as an achievement and a favour. He said through the plans like the Asian Development Bank assistance and other multilateral and central funding the PDP led government had planned to take the city to next level of development which included a rapid transport system, proper sewerage disposal and a dependable power distribution system but that too had suffered a reversal.
He said he was pained to see long queues of people waiting for gas everywhere as if they were given alms. The deteriorating power situation had made things worse and this government had lost the moral right to rule in view of the miseries heaped by it on the people.
Speaking on the occasion District President and MLC Mohd Ashraf Mir regretted that present regime had crossed all limits as far as corruption, favoritism and nepotism is concerned.
The scaricity of ration, unavailability of LPG, Kerosene and other essentials had added the problems of common man and the present government is napping in no-man's land having no concern to address their problems, he said.
Secretary coordination Ab Hameed Kosheen, Aadil Jan, vice district president Mohammad Maqbool Beig, Zone president Mohammadd Shafi Mir and others were also present and spoke to the gathering. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
