Jammu: Apni Party Provincial President and former minister S. Manjit Singh on Thursday lashed out at both the J&K administration and the Central Government for their “failure” to restore the Jammu–Srinagar National Highway, which has remained closed for over 20 days, leaving thousands of trucks stranded and causing heavy losses to fruit, vegetable, and poultry producers.
Chairing a meeting at the party’s Jammu office, Singh called for strict action against the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and even demanded registration of an FIR against officials responsible for the highway’s poor upkeep. “The delay has led to losses running into crores as perishable stocks rot in stranded trucks,” he said.
Warning that the Apni Party would be forced to launch street protests if the highway was not reopened within two days, Singh also criticised authorities in Kathua, Samba, Jammu, Udhampur and Ramban for “failing to provide even basic humanitarian aid” such as community kitchens, clean drinking water, and medical camps for drivers and their helpers stuck on the route.
“The drivers and their helpers have exhausted all their finances and are left at the mercy of God,” Singh remarked, questioning the role of the traffic police in apprising higher authorities of the crisis.
Calling the situation “a humanitarian as well as an economic emergency,” Singh demanded an extensive financial package for transporters, fruit and vegetable growers, and poultry farmers whose stocks had perished. He further sought stern legal action against NHAI for continuing to collect toll tax despite the highway’s “shabby condition and incomplete restoration.”
The Apni Party leader also pressed for accountability in the collapse of bridges and roads along the Udhampur–Banihal sector, saying FIRs should be registered against engineers and contractors whose structures “could not withstand landslides and flash floods.”
The meeting was attended by several party functionaries including District President Jammu Urban Abhay Bakaya, Provincial Vice President Saleem Alam, Provincial Secretaries Ajaz Kazmi and Balbir Singh, Social Media Incharge Vaibhav Mattoo, and Senior Vice President District Jammu Urban Neelam Gupta.
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