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Govt to pace up work for the construction of bunkers at IB

Vikas Sharma. Dated: 12/18/2018 11:32:06 AM

Vikas Sharma
Jammu, Dec 17
To fulfill the commitment made with the people of the border areas, and to provide them safe life, the government has started the construction of the bunkers in the border areas along the side of International Border (IB).
The work on these bunkers been started at all in five border districts of Jammu and Kashmir and the latest report on the progress of such bunkers is that work having been started in this regard.
In this regard, a high level team under the Divisional Commissioner, held a meet in which the DCs apprised about the present status of progress being made for the construction and allotments of individual and community bunkers in their respective districts.
The Div Com asked the DCs and executing agencies to chalk out strategy to expedite the work for construction of bunkers.
“The state government would specify the building norms for all these areas, up to five kms from the border. Priority shall be given to the bunkers which are nearest to the existing border outposts (BOPs),” said a top government official.
“Every bunker, as per the condition of the Union home ministry, should be within a distance of three kilometres from the border. The state government would submit a detailed list, containing the exact locations of the large community bunkers as well as the individual bunkers, as per the conditions laid down in this regard,” he further informed.
This may be mention here that the Ministry of Home Affairs had accorded approval to construction of 13029 individual and 1431 community type bunkers for eight border districts of the State. The cost of this mega project was reckoned to be around Rs.415 crore.
The entire cost of construction has to be borne by the Union Home Ministry. It is worth recording that the Union Ministry had started sounding the concerned authorities in Jammu and Kashmir State about this project much before actually sanctioning it and about the release of funds etc.
The concerns of the Union Home Ministry about the issue of great importance , that of protecting the life and limb of the border dwellers in the hour of crisis, appears to be not adequately responded to by the State Government which looks prosaic as well as unwarranted.
The Union Ministry has been repeatedly issuing directions and guidelines on this issue including sending several letters and reminders to the Home Department of the State asking for expediting the construction of these bunkers.