PWD embarks on mission ‘Road to Every Village’

Srinagar: Public Works Department of J&K has embarked on a mission to reach out to unconnected habitations with road connectivity, strengthen and expand the intra J&K road network, especially in rural & remote areas.
Public Works (R&B) Department has achieved considerable targets and achievements under various schemes /programs implemented for Construction, improvement/ upgradation of roads & bridges, for providing connectivity with special focus on rural areas viz. Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna (PMGSY), Bridge Program, Central Road & Infrastructure fund (CRIF), NABARD, Road Sector, Cities & Towns (Macadamization), Languishing Projects, Pothole Free Road Program, NHAI/NHIDCL/BRO, and other departmental works.
Under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), 2480 kms of road length was completed in 2021-22 besides 125 bridges are under construction to provide connectivity to far-flung areas.
It is worth mentioning that 2353 PMGSY projects covering 16,448 km were completed which connected 2033 habitations since its inception.
The marvellous journey of road length achievement by PMGSY in J&K has earned it 4th place in the national performance ranking.
“J&K is amongst the top performers in terms of achievements made under PMGSY. We are reaching out to unconnected habitations with road connectivity, besides augmenting the Power & water supply to connect every household in the rural areas,” Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha had said.
A quantum leap in terms of achievement made by J&K Government in the road sector with 6625 Kms of roads blacktopped in 2021-22, more than 1000 Kms than 2020-21, i.e. 5500 kms and more than double that was achieved in 2019-20- 2290kms blacktopped.
Chief Secretary, Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta had directed the Public Works (R&B) Department to speed up the execution of works under Capex, CSS and PMGSY to make the road to every village in J&K a reality.
Public Works Department is working hard to execute, maintain and standardize the Infrastructural requirements of J&K.
“We provide connectivity, safe roads, bridges and tunnels for sustainable and inclusive socio-economic growth. Facilitating the implementation of policies laws and, acts for maintaining transparency in governance,” a senior official of the department said.
“Major thrust is being given to the schemes envisaging road connectivity to inaccessible and difficult areas for the equitable development of all regions.”
According to official figures, 381 projects worth Rs 1487.11 crore were sanctioned under NABARD in 2021-22, which is more than three times of amount which was sanctioned last year. 115 projects worth Rs 418.67 crore were approved in 2020-21
Taking a major leap towards strengthening the e-Governance structure and bringing transparency in the system, Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha launched JK Public Works- Online Management, Monitoring and Accounting System (JKPW-OMMAS), besides two apps- “Hamari Sadak” & “Tameer Taraqqi” of J&K Public Works (R&B) department.
The online initiatives facilitate Complete Online Management and Monitoring of infrastructure with following functionalities: GIS enabled Infrastructure Management System, Geo Tracking of Roads, Online Searching of Infrastructure (Locate on Map), Addition of new Infrastructure with GIS information, Draw Road with Open Street Map and dynamic Update of Infrastructure.
The Lt Governor congratulated the Public Works (R&B) department for developing the online portal and mobile apps, enhancing transparency in the overall functioning of the department and making Jan Bhagidhari an integral part of the project execution process through a seamless flow of information in the public domain.
Moreover, the new online initiatives are also aimed at making the grievance management system more robust and responsive by covering important features like online registration of new grievances, tracking of grievances, online monitoring and real-time grievance report, Lt Governor said at the launch of initiatives.
People register and track their grievances regarding the PWD (R&B) department through “Hamari Sadak” app, while “Tameer Taraqqi” app ensures effective project supervision by dynamic updation of project status by the field staff. Anyone can fetch the details of completed and ongoing projects with the click of a button.
For the J&K administration, road connectivity is not only a key component of Rural Development by promoting access to economic and social services but generating increased agricultural incomes and productive employment opportunities is also part of their implementation strategy.