Rajouri, Mar 16: Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary on Monday laid the foundation stone for two important road projects under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana aimed at strengthening the rural connectivity in Nowshera division.
The projects included construction and maintenance of L021 Link Road from Helipad Ground Jhanghar to Ashok Gate Sarya via Purkhali in Block Qila Darhal, with a length of 4.0 km and sanctioned cost of Rs. 1001.92 lakh and L024 Chowki to Kanara East via Nalli Mohalla (Link Road) in Block Nowshera, having a length of 2.50 km with a sanctioned cost of Rs. 565.20 lakh. These projects are expected to significantly improve the connectivity and facilitate smoother transportation for the local population.
The Deputy Chief Minister also laid the foundation stone for construction of an Irrigation Guest House at Rajal, Nowshera, which will strengthen the infrastructure of the irrigation department and facilitate better field supervision and departmental functioning in the area.
Speaking on the occasion, the Deputy Chief Minister said that the government is committed to strengthen rural infrastructure and ensure that development reaches every corner of the Union Territory. He emphasized that better road connectivity will enhance access to essential services, markets and educational institutions for residents of remote areas.
Later, the Deputy Chief Minister convened public outreach camps at the foundation stone laid sites, where he interacted with the local residents and listened to their grievances.
Several issues were projected by the public, including unscheduled power cuts, scarcity of drinking water in Chowki, upgradation of GMS Sarya and GMS Jhanghar and speedy implementation of schemes under the Jal Jeevan Mission.
The Deputy Chief Minister assured the public that their genuine concerns would be taken up with the concerned departments for early redress.
Among others present on the occasion were Chief Engineer PWD, Tilak Raj; ADC Nowshera Pritam Lal Thapa; DFO Nowshera Shweta Deona, ALC Pradyot Gupta, Executive Engineer PWD (R&B) Nowshera Sarwar Mehmood besides other district officers and officials.
Meanwhile, a meeting regarding the ongoing development projects and FCA cases of Forest Division Nowshera was also chaired by the Deputy Chief Minister at Nowshera.
The meeting was attended by the Conservator of Forests, West Circle Rajouri, along with district officers of sister wings of the Forest Department. Additional Deputy Commissioner Nowshera, Chief Border Roads Organisation, Superintending Engineer Public Works Department Rajouri and Superintending Engineer PMGSY also attended the meeting.
During the meeting, the Divisional Forest Officer Nowshera apprised about the status of ongoing projects and various FCA cases pertaining to Nowshera Forest Division.
The Deputy Chief Minister reviewed the progress of the works and emphasized the need for timely coordination among all concerned departments for early resolution of issues.
On the occasion, the Deputy Chief Minister also planted a sapling in the DFO campus at Nowshera as a gesture towards promoting environmental conservation.
