Bandipora Diary

Zurimanz road submerges after rainfall

With incessant rains battering the Kashmir valley, Wular Lake in north Kashmir's Bandipora district has swelled, submerging the majority of the agricultural fields and orchards surrounding its shores. As the water level in Wular Lake has increased, the Zurimanz village road has also been submerged, hampering transportation to the village in Aloosa Tehsil of the district. Locals complained that this has been a "persistent issue," with authorities over the years not "bothering" to raise the road's height so that the connectivity issue is resolved, despite several promises. Notably, the R&B department has already submitted a DPR worth over 3.5 crores to the Wular Conservation and Management Authority last September; however, it is yet to be approved.

"Our economy gets affected as the majority of the road remains under water. When the water recedes, it leaves the road nearly non-commutable," complained the villagers, whose residents are largely a fishing community. The water chestnut business, which according to the villagers helps feed their families, also gets affected due to the poor road condition.

They have again appealed to the concerned authorities to address the issue and construct a proper road to the village.

Meanwhile, villagers from the low-lying areas around Wular Lake, such as Aloosa, Ashtengoo, Kanyari, in Sonawari, Laharwalpora, and Watpora, have said that the increased water level in the lake has destroyed mustard crops and also poses a risk to apple orchardists as many orchards were submerged in the lake water.

Villagers rue regular snags at Panzigam power station

The receiving station, located at Panzigam village on the outskirts of Bandipora town in the district headquarters, is developing regular snags, according to locals.

The receiving station, locals said, feeds electricity to over ten villages, including Panzigam, Khayar, Kaloosa, Onagam, Lawypora, Barrzulla, Laharwalpora, Patushai, Qazipora, and Watpora. However, regular snags in the receiving station have annoyed these villagers, who complain that the electricity remains often cut off, with officials from the electricity department complaining about faults in the transmission lines. The villagers said the load on the receiving station was not optimal or beyond its load-bearing capacity, but that the infrastructure at the receiving station was not up to the mark, hence the issue.

"We have to face regular cuts beyond the curtailment schedule," Saleem Ahmad Bhat from Onagam said. He added that they were unsure why the receiving station was developing snags regularly. The locals claimed they have been facing this issue for two years now. The villagers requested the concerned authorities for failure to address the issue.

Tulail village hit by landslides

The incessant rains caused minor landslides in Dangithal village of Tulail in Gurez Valley of north Kashmir's Bandipora district on Sunday, locals said. The locals told Greater Kashmir that at least two residential log houses received minor damage due to the landslides.

However, no major loss of life or any other property was recorded, they said. The locals appealed to the authorities to compensate the families. Notably, with incessant rains continuing for a week, rock slides had hit the 85 kilometer Gurez-Bandipora in Kanzalwan near Kishanganga Dam site a few days ago. Officials informed that the huge rock had blocked the road which was blasted off to allow traffic on the road. The one way traffic on the road opened on Sunday.