JAMMU, Jan 25: Stranded passengers travelling back to Kashmir on Friday protested in Jammu urging government to airlift them immediately. They also asked government to take immediate steps to clear road and to help the families stuck.
“Government should air lift stranded passengers as there are women and children who are suffering badly,” protesters said. The Srinagar Jammu highway has been closed five days back due to snowfall and landslides.
Huge snow avalanche had come down near Jawahar tunnel as well. According to traffic officials almost 800 people are stranded due to closure of highway, the only road connectivity of Valley to rest of the world.
According to reports stranded families assembled in General Bus Stand Jammu asking authorities to take serious note of difficulties they are facing. “What’s stopping government from airlifting people to valley. Will they only airlift the dead,” they said.
They said had the administration been serious they would have been all to valley in five days. “Does this government was us to accept that they cannot airlift us because they just cannot. They can, only if they want to,” they accused.
“Every day the officials tell us that road will be open tomorrow but since five days road is closed and it seems no early it will be opened,” they said. Many stranded families claimed that market prices of commodities has sky rocketed as there is no market checking squads trying to put order in place.
“Some of the shopkeepers are taking undue advantage of our miseries,” they claimed.”Many of us had been to doctors and hospitals but now there is crash crunch, since we had planned to be home at earliest,” they said.
They also said that accommodation facilities should have been arranged by the authorities or at least should have put a check fleecing by people here. “What purpose does this government serve if it leaves it’s people on roads and lives on assurances.
Promises don’t get you food, medicines and payment of bills,” protesters said. They urged governor to take stock of situation so that people have a sigh of relief. (KNO)
