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Srinagar, March 11: A day after Greater Kashmir carried a news story on the long-pending demand for the construction of the Doda-Desa-Kapran road, the Jammu and Kashmir government on Tuesday said that the proposal has been submitted to the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) and is awaiting approval.Responding to a query from MLA Dooru, G A Mir, in the ongoing Assembly session, Minister for Road and Buildings (R&B) Department, Surinder Kumar Chaudhary, said that inter-district road connectivity remains a priority for the department.“The Kapran-Desa road is planned to connect Kapran in Anantnag district with Dessa in Doda district.
The proposal for its declaration as a National Highway and its subsequent construction has been submitted multiple times to the Union Ministry. However, the final approval is still awaited. A detailed survey and the preparation of a Detailed Project Report (DPR) can only commence once the Union Ministry grants its approval,” the Minister said.
Regarding the Anantnag-Dooru-Verinag road, the Minister said that the 24.64 km stretch is an “intermediate road with an average carriageway width of 5.5 meters” and a roadway width of 7.
5 meters.The entire length is blacktopped, with 4.5 km resurfaced through macadamisation in the current financial year.
“The Annual Action Plan for road construction and upgradation for the financial year 2025-26 is yet to be framed. However, inputs from elected public representatives will be duly considered,” he said.The demand for the Doda-Desa-Kapran-Verinag road has been long standing among the people of the Chenab Valley and Kashmir.
Greater Kashmir has consistently reported on the issue, including a recent story which was published on Monday.The idea of constructing this road was first proposed in 1958 during the tenure of Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad.The demand gained traction in 1966 when people from Doda launched an agitation for its construction.
Later, in 1978, Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah also assured of taking up the project.During the PDP-BJP coalition government, both the late Mufti Muhammad Sayeed and his daughter Mehbooba Mufti pushed for DPR of the project.Once completed, the Doda-Desa-Kapran road would significantly improve connectivity, linking the districts of Doda, Ramban, and Kishtwar with Anantnag in south Kashmir.
The new road would reduce the distance between Srinagar and Doda by approximately 90 km, cutting it down from the current 229 km via Jawahar Tunnel to just 140 km. Infact Doda would be merely 45 km from Kashmir Valley’s southern end via Dooru in Anantnag district.On the Doda side, the road is motorable only up to Manjami in Desa, requiring people to walk 35 km to reach Doda.
On the Kashmir side, the road is motorable only up to Hengipora-Kapran village in Dooru-Verinag. Completing the link and reducing the distance further requires the construction of a tunnel across the Pir Panjal range.The post Need for construction of Anantnag-Doda road raised in LA after GK story appeared first on Greater Kashmir.
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