Firdous Hassan
Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir administration is set to commission 3.5 kilometre-long emergency landing strip in Bijbehara.
More than 90 per cent of the construction work on the strip has been completed. The government is spending Rs 119 crore on the strip.
In June last year, District Magistrate, Anantnag, gave a go-ahead to start work on the landing strip. This covers the area from Subhanpora to Donipora in South Kashmir. The construction is being done by the NHAI through its contractors.
An official document assessed by The Kashmir Monitor revealed 93.8 per cent of the construction work has been completed.
“It was apprised that construction of emergency landing facility from kilometre 246.200 to kilometre 249.700 on Srinagar- Banihal section of NH1A (New-NH44) is in full swing and 93.8 % progress has been achieved on it,” the document said.
The document highlights the minutes of a meeting chaired by Divisional Commissioner Kashmir PK Pole on November 27.
“The majority of works have been completed and land acquisition is under process for the Air Traffic Control (ATC) building and service road,” the document said.
The document noted that a draft 3D notification has been issued by the competent authority for land acquisition (CALA) and it has been sent to the headquarters of the National Highways Authority of India for approval and publication in the official gazette.
Five Emergency Landing Strips have been proposed for fighter and other jets in Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. A formal process for their construction would be announced once Forest and land acquisition issues are sorted out.
This year, India’s first emergency land strip came up at the Gandhav Bhakasar section on National Highway-925 in Barmer, Rajasthan. Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Nitin Gadkari inaugurated the emergency landing strip in September this year.
