Rehan Qayoom Mir
Srinagar, Feb 20: After a fresh light rainfall, a portion of the pathway, located along the famous Boulevard Road along Dal Lake in Srinagar, caved on Thursday morning, raising concerns among the locals.
Officials said the incident happened because the portion of the footpath was decades old, and only repairs made under the Smart City project involved tiling, with no other renovation work done by the SSCL.
Notably, in November 2023, the Lieutenant Governor inaugurated four Dal Lakefront projects of Srinagar Smart City Limited, which authorities said was a testimony to their commitment to reviving the historical social relationship of Srinagar city with its lakes and rivers.
Eyewitnesses and pedestrians said that the pathway of the famous Boulevard Road, near Ghat No. 17, caved in this morning. They expressed concern over the collapse of the pathway portion, stating that it could pose risks to pedestrians and vehicles commuting on the road.
“Today in the morning, we were walking near the Boulevard Road when we saw a portion of the footpath caving in. Luckily, no one was walking there at that time,” said Zubair, a local.
We suddenly heard a sound and the portion of the footpath caved in. The authorities must take immediate steps to prevent further damage and ensure the safety of people using this road,” said Numan, another local.
Notably, this footpath was repaired under the Srinagar Smart City project.
A top official from Srinagar Smart City said that they had issued a tender for the repair of this Boulevard portion that caved in. However, the construction was carried out by the R&B department, and they had not undertaken the necessary strengthening work.
Additionally, a senior official from the Roads and Buildings (R&B) department said they had worked on the Boulevard Road and the footpath portion that caved in.
However, he added that the footpath collapsed because it was decades old. “We only carried out beautification and changed the tiles on the footpath. Since the footpath was already weakened due to its age, it eventually caved in,” he said, adding that repairs on the affected portion will begin tomorrow.
