Handwara civil societies threaten mass protest over GMC relocation decision 

Handwara, Aug 19: Civil societies and trade bodies of Handwara in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district on Tuesday warned of mass protests if the government goes ahead with its decision to shift the Government Medical College (GMC) from Chogal, Handwara to Nutnusa.At a joint press conference held at Handwara, civil society leader Majid Banday, along with representatives of the Handwara trade body, Transport Union, Civil Society Rajwar, Civil Society Porupeth, Civil Society Mawar, and other groups, expressed strong opposition to the relocation move. They said huge sums of public money have already been spent by the government on the construction of the GMC at Chogal, yet for unknown reasons, the project is now being shifted.Speakers said the decision raises “serious questions on the credibility of the officers” who had selected and approved the Chogal site. “If the government shifts the GMC, it must also declare those officers a failure and repay the public money already spent there,” they demanded.The groups pointed out that more than 12,000 trees were willingly cut down by locals in anticipation of the GMC being built at Chogal. “People sacrificed their orchards and other trees with the hope of development. Now the government is backtracking,” they said, adding that they were giving an ultimatum to the administration to retain the GMC at Chogal. “If the government fails to do so, people will be forced to take to the streets in mass agitation.”Civil society members questioned the government’s justification for the flood risk at the site. “If the country we are living in can stop water from fast-flowing rivers, why can’t it divert or control water from this small canal? If the government truly believes this is a flood-prone area, then what about the thousands of people who have been living here for decades? In the last 40 years, there has been no flood. It was only during one episode of heavy rain that water overflowed, and not before or after has such a situation occurred,” they said.Another civil society member, Bilal Ahmad Zargar, argued that technology could easily address the problem. “We are living in an age of artificial intelligence where nothing is impossible. If we can build a road under the sea and hotels in the middle of the ocean, why can’t we divert this small stream? It is a matter of will, not ability,” he said.Zargar further added that it was “deeply shameful” that the GMC site, which was virtually inaugurated by the Union Home Minister, is now being sidelined. “We will not let this happen. We are united, and we will go to any extent to save the GMC. Who will pay for the crores already spent if this site is abandoned?” he asked.The groups also accused Health Minister Sakina Itoo of failing to properly visit and assess the earlier designated sites for GMC Handwara. Recently, the minister announced that the college would instead be set up at Nutnusa, citing flood risk at the Chogal site. She also claimed that all six MLAs from north Kashmir had agreed on Nutnusa as the new location.