Dream comes true: 75 years on, mosque construction kicks off in remote J&K village; people ferry bricks, cement on horseback

Srinagar: A 75-year-old dream has finally come true after the construction of the first mosque kicked off in the remote Harpora Bajnadi village of Ramban district.

The nearest mosque is 30 mins downhill. An old structure was doubling up as a mosque in the remote area.

People living in the area belong to economically weaker sections. A local committee of Harpora Bajnadi managed to collect funds and started the construction of the mosque that has now cheered up people.

“Harpora Bajnadi is a remote and hilly area of Tehsil Khari in Ramban. The area has less population and people living there are mostly economically backward. Residents have to trek for an hour from the nearest motorable road and it takes two hours to ferry construction materials on horseback. There were many challenges but the construction of Masjid Al-Noor is in full swing,” Maulvi Jaffar Ahmad Naik told The Kashmir Monitor.

Naik, who is from Bajnadi but serves at a mosque in the Nowpora Safakadal, said the construction of the mosque ‘means a lot for the people of the remote area.

“We find mosques in every lane here and people living in towns and cities will not understand what it means for the people of Harpora Bajnadi, who have to trek for an hour from the nearest motorable road to reach their village. Imagine bringing cement, sand, bricks, wood, etc on the backs of horses! If you have to come to Harpora, you will first have to come to Bajnadi nallah near Mahu which is around 35 km away from Banihal, and from there it is a one-hour trek,” he said. “The locals there are now taking great pains to construct the mosque and are looking forward to its completion.”

While the first floor of the mosque is being constructed now, Naik is hopeful that the entire work gets completed before winter.

“We are glad that the first storey is being constructed now but more work needs to be done. We are still collecting funds for the remaining work as people there are not so well-off and we are hopeful that it gets completed before winter as it is already cold in Harpora,” he said.