By Mohamad Yousuf
When a wild animal occasionally visits the interiors of Srinagar city everybody get panic and feel insecure. Just on hearing the presence of wild visitor in the city we start shouting against the Wildlife Department and ridicule the poor animal whose domain we have snatched. On spotting them in the city we some time even burn them alive or shoot them at site with guns, though we know the ways and methods to keep them away. But what about a Python, which is silently sleeping in the outskirts of Srinagar city for long? This is non else but a serpentine road called By-Pass. The premier road which is running from Pathachok to Shalteng has virtually become a dreaded man eater serpent. This killer road has eaten up hundreds of people ever since it is constructed.
With the increase of vehicular traffic it is becoming more and more hazardous than before. There always remains a threat of life to thousands of people living close to By-Pass. It has become more Khoni Road in Srinagar than the infamous Khoni Nallah on Srinagar-Jammu National Highway.
This writer has seen many dreadful accidents occurred on this road. Few years back an uncontrolled truck hit a lady who was waiting for bus near Tengpora Bridge. On reaching to the victim we found her one leg laying at one place and rest of the body far away which shook every by passer there. Another surprising accident occurred during night when a family of Gujars (Nomads) was escorting a herd of sheep on way back to their home land in Jammu region. A rash truck driver killed more than 150 domestic animals of the herd and two of their escorts. After losing its control the truck stuck in an open wide ditch. Later after searching other missing women she was found lying in the deep dug ditch under a wheel of the truck. She was pulled out live and unhurt from the wheel. It was nothing but a miracle. On Tuesday evening (20th April 2010)) one elderly resident, 75 years, of Alnoor Colony, Hyderpora, Mr. Ghulam Nabi Shah was hit and run by a fast driven car near Classic Hospital when there was heavy down poor in the city. The poor resident was going to mosque to offer prayers. He is critically injured, suffering multiple fractures on his lower limb. Being an acute diabetic patient he is fighting for life in Bone and Joint Hospital for last three days. This all happened due to pathetic condition of service road. The old man was forced to walk on main busy By-Pass. The deep dug open drains on service road of the By-Pass don’t permit free movement to pedestrians here.
There is water and only water everywhere all along this road making impossible to walk around here. These open drains have become “Mot Ka Kuan” (death trap). Now the question arises, who is responsible for Mr. Shah’s accident? Is it the fast running car or the Economic Reconstruction Agency (ERA) which has left the drains half done and made impossible for citizens to move around on foot path of service road?
Is there anyone who could address this grave situation or is there anyone else who could file a PIL (Public Interest Litigation) against the agencies looking after this dreaded man eater road (By-Pass). Someone has to come forward to save the precious lives of people here.
Published in Daily Greater Kashmir on April 28, 2010
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