Remote block along LoC in J&K connected by all-weather roads for the first time

Khwas block in Jammu and Kashmir sees no terrorism incidents after road connectivity under government's Aspirational Block Programme.

Khwas, a remote block situated in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district along the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), has not experienced any terrorism-related incidents in the past year, according to a presentation made by Deputy Commissioner Abhishek Sharma on April 21.

The change comes after four panchayats in the block were connected by road for the first time under the Union government’s Aspirational Block Programme.

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Since 2021, after a lull of two decades, the Jammu region, which includes the Chenab Valley comprising Doda, Kishtwar, Ramban, Kathua, Udhampur, and Reasi districts; and the area to the south of the Pir Panjal range, comprising Rajouri and Poonch districts, has seen a resurgence in terrorist activities. This region was a hotbed of militancy in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Mr. Sharma spoke on the Khwas block — an area spanning 2.63 sq. km., with the LoC forming its western boundary, and the Pir Panjal mountains to the north — at an event organised by the Department of Administration and Public Grievances on the occasion of Civil Services Day. He said Khwas is one of the remotest blocks in the country, with a literacy rate of 41%, and a population of 35,212 (2011 Census).

“Before the Aspirational Block Programme was launched, four out of 15 panchayats did not have any road connectivity with the block and district headquarters. This resulted in a cycle of poverty and terrorism,” Mr. Sharma said.

Markanar panchayat, for instance, is located 121 km from the district headquarters of Rajouri, and it took three hours to trek to the village. The officer said the terrain and its remoteness were among the factors for terrorism in the Khwas area.