Jammu, December 22 (Scoop News) –The Governor, N. N. Vohra, and the Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah, today reviewed the pace of progress on various development works being executed to expand and upgrade infrastructure facilities to meet the obtaining and futuristic requirements at Katra and enroute the Holy Cave Shrine at a meeting held at Raj Bhavan.
The Governor and the Chief Minister reviewed the action taken on the decisions at the earlier meetings and re-iterated that, in view of the expansion of Katra town and the progressive increase in the number of pilgrims visiting the Holy Cave Shrine, all ongoing development schemes need to be completed within predetermined time frames.
The Governor, who is also the Chairman of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, said that there is no scope whatsoever for any delay in the implementation of the development schemes under review. The Governor emphasized the need for availing the benefits available under the various schemes of the Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy for optimally harnessing solar energy to meet the requirements of lighting and water heating in the entire Katra town and elsewhere.
While reviewing the progress on the conservation and development of Bhimgarh Fort at Reasi, the Governor and the Chief Minister re-emphasised the involvement of INTACH and the Department of Archives in the finalisation and implementation of the second phase of this project which, interalia, includes landscaping, construction of walking tracks, cafeterias, car parking, public toilets, illumination and plantation of shrubs etc. It was informed that the first phase of this project will be commissioned by March 2011.
The Governor observed that in view of the upcoming rail connectivity with Katra, the projects aimed at strengthening the arrangements for the adequate supply of water, power and road connectivity need to be accorded very high priority to meet the emerging requirements. The meeting was informed that a mega project, which had been earlier formulated for augmenting water supply for Katra town is awaiting funding, for which the matter would again be taken up with the Government of India. Work on the lifting of water from Pain Nallah to the Bhawan is going apace, while the water supply at Adhkawari has been augmented by 2 lakh gallons per day by lifting water from Siar Dabri.
Referring to the need for taking all possible measures to check forest fires along the tracks to the Holy Cave and in the rest of the Shrine area, the Governor asked R. K. Goyal, who is his Principal Secretary and the Chief Executive Officer of the Board, for ensuring implementation of the Action Plan formulated by the State Forest Department. He said that besides the creation of fire lines, water bodies should also be created, wherever possible, for dealing with forest fires. He said that the field staff of the Shrine Board and all other agencies should be well trained in disaster management and tackling forest fires. He issued instructions for organizing mock drills in regard to forest fires and disaster management in the coming months to assess the levels of preparedness to handle these emergent situations. The meeting was informed that projects have been prepared for the revival of old ponds at Sanjichhat and Haathi Matha.
While reviewing the status of Tikri-Katra and Katra-Banganga roads, the Governor called for speedy completion of roads connecting the Railway Station at Katra, well before the commissioning of the Udhampur-Katra Rail Project. He added that the remaining stretch of the Katra-Tikri road should be completed expeditiously. He also laid stress for time-bound completion of the widening and upgradation of the left over 4 kilometre portion of the road from Nomain to Katra for ensuring smooth flow of traffic.
Reviewing the progress achieved on the upgradation of the Katra Hospital where under 30-bedded emergency hospital is to be added, the Governor was informed that the building would be completed by April next. He added that adequate health facilities should be put in place at Katra and along the tracks to the Holy Cave to meet the requirements of the locals as well as the visiting pilgrims.
The Chief Minister said that, to ensure time-bound completion of all the ongoing projects at Katra and along the tracks, all the concerned Administrative Secretaries shall submit monthly progress reports simultaneously to the Governor and the Chief Minister and the Chief Secretary will take a review meeting every three months, commencing with the first review in end March 2011.
The Chief Executive Officer of the SMVDSB, R. K. Goyal, presented the details of various schemes under execution in the Shrine area. These included projects related to water, waste water and solid waste management.
The Principal Secretary, PHE, Irrigation and Flood Control, A. K. Angurana, Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, B. B. Vyas, Principal Secretary, PWD (R&B), K. B. Aggarwal, Commissioner Secretary, Tourism, Atal Dulloo, Commissioner Secretary, Power Development, Basharat Ahmad Dhar, Commissioner Secretary, Forests, Shantmanu, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, R. D. Tiwari, Chief Wildlife Warden, P. C. Kapoor, DIG, Udhampur, G. S. Slathia, Director General Fire Services, Dr. G. A Bhat, Additional Chief Executive Officer of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, Dr. Mandeep K. Bhandari, Deputy Commissioner, Reasi, P. K. Pole, SSP Reasi, Anand Jain, besides various Heads of Departments, Chief Engineers and other senior officers participated in the meeting.