Srinagar, July 01 (KNO) : The mainstream as well as pro-freedom leaders of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday expressed grief over the loss of lives in Kishtwar mishap. 35 persons were killed while several others were wounded in the mishap.
National Conference (NC) vice president and former chief minister Omar Abdullah said blamed successive administrations for the Kishtwar like mishaps, saying that the next government in Jammu and Kashmir has to break this cycle and end this indifference
“Successive administrations are all guilty of the same thing – accident; high death toll; condolence statement; announcement of ex-gratia relief & we repeat the cycle the next time an accident happens. The next Government in J&K HAS TO break this cycle & end this indifference,” Omar tweeted. The former chief minister and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti expressed condolences to the families of the bereaved.
“Saddened to hear about the tragic accident in Kishtwar. Deepest condolences to families of the bereaved,” she tweeted. Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) expressed profound grief over the loss of lives in a tragic accident in Kishtwar district, describing the loss of precious lives as very unfortunate, painful and shocking.
In a statement issued to KNO, JKPCC president G A Mir expressed deep sorrow and anguish and conveyed deepest condolences to bereaved families. “The loss of precious lives in Kishtwar has dismayed me, I have no words to express my grief over the loss of precious lives in Kishtwar, I convey my heartfelt condolences to bereaved families and pray for eternal peace to departed souls,” Mir said.
“The regular incident of loss of lives in road accidents in chenab valley and elsewhere in J&K was matter of serious concern, the authorities dealing with road transport must wake from a deep slumber and should take urgent effective measures to ensure safety of passengers in hilly and plain area in the State,” Mir added. Mir also expressed solidarity with the bereaved families and prayed for their courage to bear the irreparable loss, he also prayed for the speedy recovery of injured people.
JKPCC president asked the Govt to ensure urgent treatment of injured people, sought full compensation to those, who lost their dear ones in this tragic accident. Expressing deep grief and sorrow over yet another tragic road accident in Kishtwar district, Hurriyat Conference (M) chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq extended heartfelt condolence to the bereaved families and prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured.
Hurriyat Conference (G) chairman Syed Ali Geelani expressed his shock over the tragic road accident at Kishtwar district. Geelani as per a statement issued to KNO condemned the discrimination adopted by the authorities, towards the Chenab region on the ground, that the said area might not have any military significance, so the highway running through this mountainous region have been left in the lurch to become open graves for the common masses of this area. Statistics of these killer roads are alarming and exposes the tall claims of the “development”.
He said that government very cleverly maintains and repairs only those roads which are used by its armed forces. Rulers are least bothered about the miseries and hardships of people, they maintain every inch in view of the movement of armed forces and even the life line roads are abandoned for public use, he added. Condoling the bereaved families Hurriyat chairman prayed for the eternal peace of the departed souls and courage to the effected, for this irreparable human loss.
Mirwaiz as per a statement issued to KNO said this incident occurred barely a few days after the Mughal road accident in which a dozen school children died and many others sustained grave injuries, adding, growing road accidents, taking toll on human lives, was a cause of concern and it was because of the dilapidated road conditions, rash driving by drivers and overloading that road accident were showing a steep rise across the state.
Taking a dig at the state administration for resorting to lip servicing only and confining itself to expressing condolences only, Mirwaiz said that it seems there is no check by the administration on rash driving, over speeding, overloading and travel on crucial roads without proper travel permits. He said despite tall claims major and crucial roads across the state remain in shambles, as a result, they become death traps, which is highly unfortunate.
Mirwaiz demanded impartial probe into the Kishtwar incident so that reasons that led to the major accident comes to fore and those found involved in any lapses are punished to prevent such in incidents in the future. Tehreek-e-Hurriyat (TeH) chairman Mohammad Ashraf Sehrai also expressed shock and pain over the horrific road accident in Kishtwar.
In his statement issued to KNO, Sehrai said that it is painful to see that road accidents are increasing at an alarming rate and it seems to be a routine as the administration and concerned departments is in deep slumber and not taking road and passenger safety measures swiftly.
Sehrai expressed sympathies and solidarity with the families whose loved ones were killed in the tragic road accident and shared his thoughts and prayers with the bereaved families. He prayed for speedy recovery to the injured. Expressing profound grief and shock over fatalities in Kishtwar road accident, Syed Mohammad Altaf Bukhari, former finance minister urged the Governor to take concrete steps to curb the frequency of road accidents that have assumed alarming proportions in the State.
In a condolence message issued here, Bukhari extended solidarity with the bereaved family and prayed for eternal peace to the departed soul. He also prayed for speedy recovery of the injured passengers. “I convey my heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families. May God give you courage to bear the loss of your near and dear ones,” he said.
Disappointed over the frequency of road accidents in Jammu and Kashmir, Bukhari said that these mishaps are becoming a new normal in the state. “Today we have lost over 30 precious human lives in Kishtwar road accident. The other day, we witnessed a heart wrenching road mishap at Pir Ki Gali loosing 11 children who had gone for a picnic.
It seems the authorities concerned consider these accidents and deaths caused therein, as mere statistics!” Bukhari opined, demanding a high level committee to report on the issue and suggest concrete remedial measures to the government. Expressing shock and grief over fatal road accident in Kishtwar district, CPI (M) leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami termed administration’s callousness responsible for the increasing number of accidents in the state.
This Ramban-Kishtwar highway has become a death trap and such accidents has become a norm. The reticence on part of the government vis-à-vis steps taken to prevent the loss of precious lives in swelling number of road accidents across the state is inopportune which can only worsen the situation, he said in a statement issued to KNO.
“The State government must come out with a report on action taken over recommendations of a House Committee led by me which was constituted to prepare a comprehensive report on causes and measures to bring down the number of road mishaps in the state. The report that we prepared had not left out any dimension and measures were recommended to be taken by the government to prevent fatal road accidents,” he added.
Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) vice president and former MLC Ghulam Nabi Monga expressed grief and shock over the tragic road accident. In a statement issued to KNO, Monga while terming the accident as unfortunate and tragic, said, the loss of precious lives is shocking for everyone.
While praying to Allah to rest the departed souls in peace and give courage and fortitude to the bereaved families to bear the irreparable loss, he also prayed for the early recovery of those who have been injured in the accident. Awami Itehaad Party (AIP) president and former MLA Langate, Engineer Abdul Rasheed Sheikh also expressed grief and shock over Kishtwar traffic accident and said that the tragedy has exposed the tall claims of government about providing connectivity to hilly and remote areas.
He said that successive governments have done nothing to build road infra-structure in remote areas like Karnah, Uri, Chinab valley and Pir Panchal regions, as such frequent accidents take place resulting in loss of lives from Surankote to Kishtawar. Senior Congress leader and former MLA Bandipora Usman Majid expressed profound grief over the loss of lives in Kishtwar district and conveyed deepest condolences to bereaved families. In a statement issued to KNO, he said that there are no words to describe the horrific accident in Kishtwar. He described the deaths in the accident as unfortunate and tragic.(KNO)
