BJP demands opening of Ladakh- Mansarowar route for all seasons

It also asked setting up of University, Kargil Airport, Ladakh Scouts based on VDCs and construction of Zojila tunnel

Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Jammu and Kashmir, BJP today demanded opening of Ladakh-Mansarowar route, setting up of University, Kargil Airport, Ladakh Scouts based on VDCs and construction of Zojila tunnel immediately.

The saffron party raised the charter of demands with the Union government for empowering Ladakh region, demanding construction of Zojila tunnel to ensure connectivity of the people of the region with the rest of the country, a party spokesman said in a statement here.

The state unit of BJP also demanded opening of Ladakh- Mansarowar route for all seasons, he said.

The party demanded to establish a civil airport at Kargil to meet the age-old demand of people and enable them to overcome the difficulties they face during the winter.

BJP also batted for establishment of a University in Ladakh as it doesn't have a single institution of Higher learning, the spokesman said, adding that the two colleges in the region are ill-equipped and under-staffed.

For providing special recruitments, the party called for creation of Ladakh Scouts like Village Defence Committee (VDCs).

"The VDCs have been discharging obligations towards the nation braving all odds in the militancy-affected areas since 1990s. It would be in the national interest if the VDCs are brought at par with the Ladakh Scouts," he said.

"The VDCs are working with single-minded devotion in the hilly areas of Jammu province, including the erstwhile Doda district and Rajouri and Poonch districts. They need to be made more sophisticated and their status enhanced," he added.

BJP demanded construction of all weather road between Srinagar and Leh (Ladakh) to mitigate the hardships of the people of the area.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is going to Jammu and Kashmir tomorrow for a one-day visit, during which he will inaugurate a rail link to put Katra on the railway map and address a Sanik Samelan in Srinagar.