More routes connecting J&K and PoK to be opened soon: Mehbooba Mufti

Suchetgarh is on the international border in R S Pura tehsil in Jammu, and across the border is Sialkot district of Pakistan.

[related-post]

Watch Video: What’s making news

“Many routes came up for discussion — Suchetgarh, Nowshera-Jhanghar, Kargil-Skardu, Turtuk-Thapalu, among others. But he (Home Minister Rajnath Singh) said that we can consider opening one or two roads at the moment. If I am asked about two roads which need to be opened immediately, I will name Suchetgarh and Kargil-Skardu,’’ Mehbooba said while addressing a function on the occasion of signing of an MoU between Jammu Development Authority and the Sabarmati Riverfront Development Corporation Limited, Ahmedabad, for management consultancy and technical assistance for development of the Tawi riverfront in Jammu.

R S Pura tehsil is considered the rice bowl of India’s fine basmati rice, and Mehbooba said “our basmati goes there (to Pakistan),” adding that there is lot of hardware industry on the Indian side, while Pakistan manufactures very little, and additional border routes would mean many items can be exported to Pakistan. The state will benefit the way Punjab has benefitted from Wagah border, she said.

Recalling the “teamwork” between former CM Mufti Sayeed and Deputy CM Nirmal Singh for the Tawi beautification project, she said the late CM always had a soft corner for the people of Jammu and used to call them “truly secular’’, as they not only accommodated lakhs of Hindu and Muslim migrants from Valley but also shared their land, water and electricity with them.

5 soldiers injured in J&K encounter

Five soldiers were injured in an encounter between militants and the Army in North Kashmir’s Machil sector near the Line of Control. The encounter was still on at the time of going to press.

Army said that troopers spotted a group of militants in the forests of Katwara near Jet Gali in Machil sector. In the exchange of fire, five soldiers of 55 Rashtriya Rifles were injured. One soldier was shifted to base hospital Srinagar for treatment.