SrinagarThe Jammu and Kashmir high court has directed teams of lawyers, who were directed to inspect and oversee the conditions of various roads in Kashmir Valley, to remain present before it on August 30.
Hearing a Public Interest Litigation filed by Civil Society Tral through advocate G N Shaheen, a division bench of Chief Justice, Justice Badar Durez Ahmad and Justice Ali Mohammad Magrey also directed government to file status report positively within four weeks.
Despite the clear directions, other than one Court Commissioner, the other Court Commissioners have not filed their reports. All the Court Commissioners are directed to be present in Court on the next date of hearing, the court said and notified the hearing on August 30.
As pot-holed and damaged roads took toll on commuting in Kashmir, the high Court had constituted teams of lawyers as commissioners to keep it posted about the condition of the roads.
As per the courts directions, a team of three lawyers comprising G N Sofi, Ashiq Hussain and Rizwan Bhat will oversee the road condition from Qazigund to Srinagar with the help of one officer from each RAMKI and National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) and report the court about the condition of the stretch with photographs.
From Srinagar to Sonamarg, two lawyersBhat Fayaz and Asif Alihave been asked to inform the court about the upgradation of the road project under National Highway Authority of India.
Similarly from Bandipora to Sumbal, which comes under BRO, two lawyers Bhat Fayaz and N A Malik have been tasked to oversee the road stretch with concerned officials and report to the court.
From Srinagar-Sopore, advocates B A Zargar and Shafkat Nazir have been appointed to inspect the condition of the road stretch and report to the court.
Two lawyersM Amin Khan and Shabir Ahman Bhatwere appointed to inspect the road from Awantipora to Tral and report to the court.
The court has already impressed upon these commissioners and concerned officers to work in tandem as a single team and ensure that its orders are implemented.
In one of the status reports, J&Ks Inspector General of Police Traffic had stated that wherever traffic mess taking place, it is because of the decrepit roads.
Dilapidated condition of the road leads to slow traffic movement which causes frequent traffic jams, the IGP had said, underling that it also affects the job of men in uniform to regulate the traffic and avoid jams, causing inconvenience to motorists and general public.
The PIL seeks directions for repairing the highway especially from Banihal to Srinagar and Srinagar to Baramulla. However, the court subsequently widened the scope of the petition to encompass roads across the Valley.
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