Illegal mining, encroachments aggravating landslides: Jitendra Singh

Jammu, Aug 29 (PTI) Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Friday urged people to put an end to illegal mining and encroachments to prevent future landslides in Jammu and Kashmir.

Chairing a meeting with district administration and representatives of various departments in Udhampur after the recent heavy rains, Singh said the restoration work was progressing at a fast pace.

"People should put an end to illegal mining and encroachments to prevent landslides and related catastrophes in Jammu and Kashmir," he said.

Referring to the caving in of the Keerian Gadiyal Bridge, the minister said that two years ago, the builder had raised concerns about its vulnerability.

"Today, at the sight of the national highway blockade in Kathua, regional officers of NHAI highlighted that of the 15 frames of the bridge, only two had remained functional and 13 had been eroded, leading to its caving in," Singh said.

He also announced that, as a long-term measure, a new bridge will be constructed at the affected stretch of the highway in Udhampur, which witnessed the heaviest rainfall in 99 years.

The minister highlighted that the movement of essential vehicles on the highway will resume by Friday night.

"Our top priority is to restore traffic on highways as well as train tracks," Singh told reporters at Udhampur.

The minister also flagged concerns raised in Kathua over encroachments and illegal mining, which are aggravating damage to infrastructure.

“When encroachment drives begin, our own people resist them. Big companies that built the bridges say that mining and digging by locals is causing serious damage,” he said.

"It is disgusting and shameful when even the national road project companies and national highway authorities hold illegal mining and unauthorised encroachments by our own people responsible for the erosion of bridges and highways constructed by them," he said.

He said that in the past, there have been cases where complaints have been made against wrongdoers and penal action, like blacklisting and fines up to Rs 2 crore, have been imposed. PTI AB RHL