Baramulla (Kashmir), May 11 –The Srinagar-Muzafarabad road would have become fully operational by now had the PDP-led Government continued in office beyond 2005 said Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on Monday. He said at public meeting here today “My Government would have, by now, not only made the Srinagar-Muzafarabad road fully functional, but ensured reopening of all the traditional cross-LoC routes in Jammu & Kashmir.”
Winding up the campaigning for Baramulla parliamentary constituency with a massive show of strength in this historic town, the PDP Patron said, unfortunately, after the change of guard in 2005, the State Government placed the cross-LoC reconciliation process on the back-burner and the present Government also seems to be having little interest in the revival of the historic process initiated by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh in April 2005. He said the economic future of Jammu & Kashmir is significantly linked to the liberty of its people to travel freely across the borders. “The removal of restrictions on travel will significantly remove the restrictions on our growth as is happening in other parts of the World,” he said.
“It is heartening to note that despite various procedural hiccups, cross-LoC trade through Srinagar-Muzafarabad and Poonch-Rawalakote roads is growing steadily and building, in the process, new bonds of trust between the people across the divide,” Sayeed said and added that this rejuvenating effort has to be stepped up and consolidated by allowing hassle-free movement of people and goods across the borders in Jammu & Kashmir. “To make this happen the Governments of India and Pakistan must resolve the issues of communication and currency hampering the free cross-LoC trade,” he said.
Sayeed said the people of the State have to be brought out of the mentality of siege by allowing them to freely connect to the outside world through knowledge and trade. He said in its ultimate form of the liberalization of borders, PDP envisions a bus ticket to serve as a passport and visa for the people of Jammu & Kashmir to travel into any part of the erstwhile State and beyond. “To this liberty to travel freely in the region, is linked the economic future of the State in a significant measure,” he said and added that the history of the sub-continent makes it imperative for both India and Pakistan to not only resolve their mutual conflicts but also forge a healthy cooperation towards achieving the desired levels of human development.
Reiterating that the intra-state confidence building measures could help create the necessary environment for peace, Sayeed said their impact, however, largely depends on the political will to implement them in spirit and form. He said despite the Prime Minister having convened three roundtable conferences on Kashmir and constituting five Working Groups, nothing seems to be moving towards the implementation of the recommendations of these Groups. “Such a dallying attitude only brews cynicism and alienation among the people here,” he said.
Sayeed said the political reconciliation process must be supplemented with measures that are economically beneficial to the State. “One such measure could be transfer of some mega power projects to the State as has been recommended by the Prime Minister’s Task Force on Jammu & Kashmir headed by former RBI Governor C Rangarajan.,” he said.