Jammu and Kashmir updates on regional road infrastructure projects

The Jammu and Kashmir Government has addressed two separate road infrastructure developments in recent legislative updates.

Regarding the Pantha Chowk to Galander stretch in Pampore, the Public Works (R&B) Department stated that no proposal currently exists to widen or upgrade this 4.50-km road. While the route is a vital link for goods and passenger transport—serving the Khrew-Khonmoh industrial belt and connecting to NH-44—the government noted that no traffic study has been conducted to verify claims that it carries 40 per cent of Jammu-Srinagar transport. The department is currently managing the repair and maintenance of the stretch through a recently floated tender.

In Bandipora district, the ₹47.42 crore Barnai–Jawdora Link Road project is awaiting mandatory forest clearances before construction can begin. Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Kumar Choudhary informed the Legislative Assembly that the project, sanctioned by the National Rural Infrastructure Development Agency, aims to provide all-weather connectivity to the remote Jawdora habitation. Although the project has been tendered and machinery has been mobilized, the entire road alignment passes through forest land, requiring environmental formalities and tree enumeration via the PARIVESH portal.