SRINAGAR: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday visited flood-affected areas of Rajouri district and reviewed the damage caused by the recent flash floods, announcing enhanced relief and rehabilitation measures for families who lost their homes and agricultural land and directing authorities to accelerate restoration of damaged roads, power and drinking-water infrastructure.
During an extensive tour of the affected areas, Abdullah met families who lost their relatives and inspected damaged public infrastructure, including the Circular Road, Bela Bus Stand and the flood-hit Aitey area. He also chaired a high-level meeting with senior civil and police officers to review rescue, relief, restoration and long-term mitigation measures.
The Chief Minister said the existing relief assistance was inadequate to meet the cost of reconstruction and rehabilitation following the scale of destruction caused by the floods. He assured the affected families that the government would enhance the quantum of relief and provide comprehensive rehabilitation support.
A significant decision taken during the review was to rehabilitate families who had lost both their houses and agricultural land. Abdullah directed the Deputy Commissioner, Rajouri, to identify suitable government land and provide five marlas to each such family for rehabilitation. He also ordered the immediate provision of special free ration to families rendered homeless and landless by the disaster.
The Chief Minister said rehabilitation of affected families and restoration of damaged infrastructure would remain a priority until normalcy was restored in the affected areas.
Abdullah began his field visit by meeting the family of Abdul Ghani, a Jal Shakti daily-wage worker who died after being swept away by flash floods while performing night duty at a water-supply pumping station in Kote Behrote, Thanamandi. He expressed condolences to the bereaved family and assured them of the government’s full support.
At the PWD Dak Bungalow, the Chief Minister also met the families of Javed Iqbal, son of Sain Khan of Kandi Budhal; Vikas Choudhary of Panchayat Bagla in Qila Darhal; Shahida Parveen, wife of Abdul Rehman of Bhatian village; and Pinky Singh, wife of Bablu Singh of Sunderbani.
He expressed grief over the loss of lives and assured the families that the government would stand by them and extend all possible assistance during the rehabilitation process.
Abdullah subsequently inspected the Circular Road, where nearly 200 metres of the road was washed away in the July 19 flash floods. He visited the flood-hit Aitey area to assess damage to residential areas, public infrastructure and local connectivity and directed the concerned departments to expedite restoration.
He also called for protective measures to be incorporated at vulnerable locations so that restored infrastructure is better able to withstand future extreme weather events.
At the severely affected Bela Bus Stand, the Chief Minister took stock of damage to the bus stand, adjoining public infrastructure and commercial establishments. He interacted with residents and officials and directed the district administration to ensure early restoration of essential services and public facilities.
The Chief Minister also visited the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Rajouri, which has been declared unsafe following the floods. He reviewed the damage to the building and assured that appropriate measures would be taken to ensure the smooth functioning of the district administration.
At the review meeting, Abdullah noted that natural disasters, particularly cloudbursts and flash floods, had become increasingly frequent in Jammu and Kashmir. He said that although the Meteorological Department issues rainfall forecasts and advisories, accurately predicting the precise location of cloudbursts remained a challenge, making area-specific preparedness difficult.
He appreciated the Rajouri administration for issuing timely advisories and pre-positioning men and machinery in vulnerable areas, saying these measures had helped minimise loss of life. He also commended the coordinated rescue, evacuation and relief operations undertaken immediately after the disaster.
Reviewing damage to the power infrastructure, Abdullah was informed that the 33 KV transmission line between Rajouri and Poonch had suffered extensive damage, resulting in disruption of electricity supply. While appreciating the temporary restoration undertaken by the Power Development Department, he directed officials to complete permanent restoration at the earliest.
He also stressed the need to restore drinking-water supplies in the affected areas. The Jal Shakti Department was directed to submit proposals for installation of hand pumps wherever feasible, with the aim of providing reliable alternative sources of drinking water in areas where the existing supply infrastructure has been damaged.
The Chief Minister called for a fundamental review of infrastructure design in the mountainous areas of Jammu and Kashmir, particularly roads. He said engineering designs developed for plains could not simply be replicated in hilly and mountainous terrain, where roads and other infrastructure face substantially different geological and climatic risks.
He directed the Public Works Department to submit recommendations for developing more resilient road infrastructure capable of withstanding flash floods and other natural disasters.
The Chief Minister also directed preparation of a proposal for construction of a Mini Secretariat in Rajouri. He asked the administration to examine the possibility of monetising government office spaces that may become available once departments are shifted to the proposed complex.
On construction along riverbanks, Abdullah said extreme weather events demonstrated that rivers could reclaim their natural courses, underlining the risks associated with construction in vulnerable areas. He made it clear that construction along such vulnerable stretches would not be permitted in future.
He also assured that issues relating to the alternate bus stand, restoration of Jal Shakti infrastructure and other major public infrastructure requirements would be examined sympathetically.
Abdullah directed the district administration and line departments to maintain the same level of coordination displayed during the immediate rescue and relief phase and to implement preventive and mitigation measures to reduce the impact of future disasters.
The Chief Minister was accompanied during the visit by Rajouri MLA Iftkhar Ahmed, Budhal MLA Javed Iqbal Choudhary, Thanamandi MLA Muzaffar Iqbal Khan, Additional Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister Dheeraj Gupta, Deputy Commissioner Rajouri Abhishek Sharma, SSP Rajouri Gaurav Sikarwar, ADDC Rajouri Malikzada Sheraz-ul-Haq, ADC Rajouri Ravi Kumar Sihag and other senior civil and police officers.
