Maleeha Sofi
Srinagar, Feb 9: Even though many areas have heaved a sigh of relief after the introduction of E-autos and E-buses in Srinagar, many areas especially in old city areas continue to face difficulties in absence of proper public transport facilities.
Various areas of the city like Fateh Kadal, Jamlatta, Naidyaar, etc lack the facilities of public transport. People who have to travel daily for work or study suffer the most.
A working lady, Quraiba, who lives in Naidyar, Rainawari told news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that “It has become a necessity to own a vehicle.” People in her locality ask each other for vehicles in case of emergency. She believes it is impossible for everyone to have a car or two wheeler of their own. “The situation becomes worse if there is a medical emergency,” she said.
She owns a boutique in Khanyar and she has to walk to the bus stop every day.. In case school students or any other working person has to reach earlier, it causes problems for them. “The only option we have is auto-rickshaws which charge Rs 100 from my home to the bus stop, which is not affordable to everyone,” said Quraiba. The same distance can be covered through a bus for Rs 10 only. The roadway being wide enough lacks the bus service.
Jamalatta, an area near to Nawa Kadal in old Srinagar, also lacks the transport facility. Once a roadway which was occupied with matador buses, now awaits even for one single bus. Some residents even recall that the locality had a bus stand. Umar, working in a private company, has to walk across 2 kilometers every day to catch a bus to his office. “We have to face overloaded buses,” he said as being another result of the same problem. It takes him half an hour to walk to the bus stop. “I have to leave home much earlier and reach later than the ideal time,” he said.
Sadiya, a resident of Fateh Kadal who works in Munawarabad faces similar problems daily. She has to walk to Khanyar which takes her 20 minutes to catch the bus to her work place. “It is not just about time, it is extremely tiring,” said Sadiya. She blames this tedious exercise for her routine fatigue. She expressed her disappointment for not having any bus service even now. “I believed the smart city project could bring some respite, but unfortunately it did not,” she said with discontentment on her face.
Adil Rashid, a resident of Srinagar’s Zafran Colony, narrated the same tale. He said a few sumos ply from Balhama to Pantha Chowk only while there is just a single bus that plies on the road stretch. “People have to walk up to Sempora to board the vehicle upto Pantha Chowk. We demand E-buses from Pantha Chowk to Bahama on a regular basis. At least 3 to 4 buses should be allowed to ply on the road stretch
While many routes of the Srinagar Smart City Limited Project of e-buses are yet to be known, these residents are hopeful that their respective areas will be considered for the bus service. They await the relief that buses can bring to their daily travel problems.
