Srinagar
Federation of University Teachers Associations of Kashmir (FUTAK)- a conglomerate of the Teachers Associations of the University of Kashmir, SKAUST-Kashmir, Islamic University of Science and Technology and Central University of Kashmir has in a joint statement has termed a ban on Srinagar-Jammu highway as anti-people, unjust and unheard of in a democratic and civilized society.
A spokesperson of the Federation said that this ban will cause immense hardships not only to students, teachers and government employees who have to travel on the highway to attend to their classes and duties but will also adversely impact upon the civil liberties of traders, tourists, patients and the common citizens at large that are otherwise guaranteed to them under a constitutional democracy.
Federation has called upon the state government to revoke the ban forthwith and allow civilian traffic on the national highway on all days of the week without any hindrances and urged it to work out alternative modalities for the convoy movement as was done in the past during some of the most turbulent times in the state. Federation has stated that this ban will be a huge blow to the education, horticulture, tourism, trade, transport and health sectors of the J&K state and therefore public interest must be reign supreme in all such decision making by the government.
