BRO speeds up work on Rajouri-Surankote road; Locals welcome the progress

Rajouri (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], December 21 (ANI): The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is making rapid progress on the Rajouri-Thanamandi-Bufliaz-Surankote Road, a key stretch under the 'Megha Project' aimed at connecting the Pir Panjal region with the Kashmir Valley, working on a 'war-footing' basis, efforts such as blacktopping, road widening, and other measures to significantly reduce travel time between Rajouri, Thanamandi, Bufliaz and Surankote.
Local resident Abdul Hamid welcomed the progress and said the project would benefit people and businesses in the region. "The work has been going on here for a long time, and BRO is doing very good work. They are making it even better than it was before... I think it will be completed by the upcoming March... Many people and their businesses will benefit from this..." he said.
Another local resident also praised the BRO for upgrading the road infrastructure in the hilly terrain. "The work of BRO has been going on here with full zest. I have never seen such good work being done by BRO... we are very happy about this... it provides people with many facilities and employment..." the local said.
Highlighting the transformation, he added, "Earlier, there was a single-lane road... However, BRO made it into a double-lane road by cutting through the mountains... It's almost complete..."
Meanwhile, in another development, the government has established road connectivity to remote villages in the Kalakote sub-division of Rajouri district for the first time since Independence, linking them to the Tehsil headquarters, the district headquarters, and the Rajouri-Kalakote highway.
Road connectivity across the key stretch from Patta to Ghodar village, along with previously unconnected Arras villages, has now been established under the NABARD scheme. These five to six villages previously lacked motorable road access.
Locals expressed gratitude to the government for extending connectivity in the hilly and remote areas of the Pir Panjal Mountain Range.
"Government has done good....earlier, we used to face difficulties... we have got benefits under the PM Modi government...there are roads in every home...there is electricity...earlier there was nothing....children used to walk to school...there was no connectivity....I thank PM Modi... good work is going on..." Lal told ANI.
Recalling past hardships, he said, "When our elders used to get sick, we used horses... even government officials could not travel to this village...Children and teachers faced problems in reaching this village....there was difficulty in taking the elders to hospitals...PM Modi has done a lot of work...."
After decades of isolation, villages such as Patta, Ghodar, and nearby hamlets now have basic road access, improving safety, education, healthcare access, and livelihood opportunities for the local population. (ANI)