Pulwama, March 24: Residents of Heff and surrounding villages have appealed to authorities in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district for removal of a road barricade erected at Achan village.
Heff village falls in Shopian on the borderline with Pulwama and as such people from the hamlet frequently travel to the neighbouring district for different needs.
The residents from the Hamlet prefer Pulwama for availing education, health care facilities and other requirements.
Villagers said that people of the area have been aggrieved after authorities erected a road barricade three years ago in Achan, a neighbouring village which comes under jurisdiction of Pulwama district.
They added that the barricaded road is the shortest route connecting the hamlet with Pulwama district.
“ This is the shortest route connecting Heff and many villages in Shopian with Pulwama,” Sameer Ahmad, a local resident said, adding that due to the barricade students, patients and common people are facing a lot of inconvenience.
“Ambulances ferrying patients towards Srinagar or Pulwama can’t cross through and have to use a longer route,” he said, adding school buses carrying students too have to use a different and lengthy road.
The residents said that they pleaded before authorities for removal of this permanent road barricade at Achan village in Pulwama multiple times but to no avail.
They added that the matter was also taken up through Jammu and Kashmir integrated grievance redress and monitoring system.
“ In response to our grievance authorities in Pulwama replied that the barricade was installed to check extraction and transportation of minerals from a rivulet flowing through the area,” the residents said, adding that extraction of minerals and transportation goes on through other routes.
“ Permanent barricade is not a solution to check illegal mining,” Sameer Ahmad appealed to authorities to remove the barricade so that people can heave a sigh of relief.
Officials of R and B department Pulwama told Rising Kashmir that residents of the area can approach district administration with the grievance.
“ We will follow instructions of the district administration,” they said.
