Two decades since foundation, Budgam’s Kanigund Bridge over Nallah Sukhnag still a distant dream

Budgam: Residents of more than three dozen villages of Beerwah and Khansahib constituencies of central Kashmir’s Budgam district suffer as the successive regimes failed to construct a vital bridge over Nallah Sukhnag at Kanigund village. 

Villagers alleged that in the absence of bridge they are compelled to cross the Sukhnag Nallah either opting temporary alternatives or travel a tiring distance for hours.
  According to the inhabitants of Kanigund village the foundation of the bridge was laid in 1991 and almost eight base pillars were erected but the work was left midway for unknown reasons.

“The bridge falls between the two constituencies of Beerwah and Khansahib and the hindrances in its construction may be a political rivalry of its concerning leaders who might be snubbing it as of the fund share and vote purposes,” Peerzada Ishfaq a local claimed.

Ishfaq further said, people from the other side of bridge are forced to travel more than 37 kilometers to reach Budgam and the construction of bridge would relief people by reducing their three hours journey to one hour.
 
“We have orchards, agricultural fields and other day to day works on the other side of Nallah but in the absence of bridge we most of the times fear our lives by crossing the Nallah through temporary means when the water level of Nallah exceeds.”

Haji Noor Mohammad, a local social worker said, “I along with other villagers took this issue to every department and knocked the doors of all the successive Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA’s) of the both constituencies since and before its foundation even we approached Omer Abdulla in his chief minister tenure who was also MLA of Beerwah constituency at time but in return we received nothing other than disappointments and fake promises.”

He said the apathetic approach of concerned department and MLA’s the flowing water of this Nallah took several lives as of using the temporary means. “We have temporarily built wooden bridge over the decades old erected pillars among them even two pillars are half drowned in the Nallah and everyday people from both sides of Nallah risk their lives to cross it,” Mohammad rued.
He further lamented, “Our graveyard falls on the other side of the Nallah and we carry dead bodies either directly through the Nallah or ferry them in a vehicle through other villages to get them buried.”

 
When contacted Assistant Executive Engineer Beerwah, Abdul Qayoom, said that the foundation of the bridge was laid by rural development department.

 “I don’t know the reasons why they failed to construct that bridge. Besides we have forwarded many proposals to government in which recent proposal of Rs 17 lakhs was forwarded last year for the construction of new bridge and as soon proposal would be approved and the department gets funds, we will start construction of the bridge.”

“I have visited the site many times and we cannot continue the work of that foundation because the two erected pillars are already half tumbled so we don’t know the actual strength of the erected foundation that is why they are forwarding proposals for a new bridge that would be constructed at the exact location of old foundations,” he said.

Meanwhile villagers sought immediate action of higher authorities including Deputy Commissioner Budgam to construct the bridge for them and ease their day to day sufferings.