Doda-Dessa-Kapran-Verinag road project remains distant dream

Anantnag, Mar 9: The much-anticipated Doda-Dessa-Kapran-Verinag road project remains stalled, as official communications from Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highway (MoRTH) to the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) and the Public Works Department (PWD) have yielded no progress.

On April 21, 2023, the office of Union Minister of State Dr Jitendra Singh wrote to the NHIDCL chairman regarding the project, following a representation by Bharatiya Janata Party ( BJP) district President Doda, Vijay Mohan Thakur. The communiqué wrote in detail the need for the road as a safer and better alternative to the existing National Highway connecting Jammu and Kashmir regions. However, no further developments have taken place. An NHIDCL official said that the road must first receive National Highway status before they can take over and prepare its Detailed Project Report (DPR).

Earlier, on March 2, 2023, a similar letter was sent from the Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha's office to the Principal Secretary, PWD, following a request by the Greater Verinag Civil Society.

The letter urged the government to take necessary action regarding the long-pending demand for the road. However, Executive Engineer Roads and Buildings (R&B) Dooru Division, Farooq Khan, said that the DPR has yet to be finalized and approved. An official revealed that the preliminary DPR for the 47-km stretch from Hengipora-Kapran in Verinag has been under government review for over eight years.

The estimated cost for this segment excluding the tunnel was then pegged at Rs. 210 crore. The DPR for the Doda-Desa section is yet to be prepared by the Jammu division. The proposal for the Doda-Dessa-Kapran road dates back to 1958 during Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad’s tenure. The project gained momentum in 1966 when Doda residents launched an agitation for its construction. Later, in 1978  Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah also promised to take up the project. Successive leaders and former Chief Ministers Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and Mehbooba Mufti, also pushed for the DPR’s preparation.

Once completed, the road would link the districts of Doda, Ramban, and Kishtwar with Anantnag in South Kashmir, reducing the distance between Srinagar and Doda by 90 km—from 229 km via Navyug tunnel to just 140 km. Doda would be only 45 km from Kashmir’s southern end via Dooru in Anantnag district.Currently, on the Doda side, the road is motorable only up to Manjami in Dessa, forcing people to walk 35 km to reach Doda.On the Kashmir side, it is motorable up to Hengipora-Kapran in Dooru-Verinag.A tunnel across the Pir Panchal range is necessary to complete the link. Despite an announcement in 2009 for a 7-km tunnel near Gayi in Dessa, no concrete progress has been made. “Even the survey has not been carried out,” an official said.

In 2016, former Chief Minister and Member of Parliament Ghulam Nabi Azad urged the central government to declare the Doda-Dessa-Kapran road a National Highway. However, locals remain upset over the prolonged inaction.

“This road is the shortest and safest route to Kashmir, without the usual landslide and shooting stone dangers,” said Ishtiyaq Deva, an activist from Chenab valley. He said that a tunnel would make it an all-weather road and significantly reduce accidents in the region. “The road could become a  Bhaderwah-Kathua - Himachal Pradesh circuit ,” Dev said. He said that people are now expecting local legislator Shakti Parihar to plead their case. The road has immense potential as a strategic and tourism route. Chooni Lal Thakur, a lawyer from Doda, and convener Doda Development Front said the breathtaking scenic beauty of the region, including Paritalab and Brari lakes and around fifty meadows, would attract visitors. “The government should construct the road in phases, similar to the Kokernag-Sinthan-Kishtwar road, allowing summer connectivity until a tunnel is built,” Thakur said. Residents are pinning their hopes on Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, to finally announce the project and the road becoming reality during his stint only. “We hope he won’t let us down and will ensure the road’s construction at the earliest,” said Peer Shahbaz, District Development Council (DDC) member of Verinag.