Srinagar: The hills of Jammu and Kashmir have always demanded courage from those who call them home. In the remote belts of Gurez, Keran, Tangdhar, Karnah, Marwah, Warwan, Dachan, Padder, Nagseeni, Bhales, Gandoh, Dudu and Basantgarh, lakhs of citizens have for decades faced a daily struggle that has little to do with luxury and everything to do with survival, a bag of ration, a tin of kerosene, an LPG cylinder, a tablet of medicine, or the heartbreaking task of carrying a seriously ill patient on foot to a distant health institution.
The Constitution of India promises every citizen an equal right to a dignified and safe life, and for years that promise seemed a cruel irony for those perched on steep Himalayan slopes and deep gorges. Yet the winds of change, though slow, are finally beginning to blow across these valleys, and there is now a genuine reason to believe that the distance between constitutional promise and lived reality is steadily shrinking.
The Dudu-Basantgarh belt of Udhampur district, home to over 43,000 people, is perhaps the most vivid symbol of both the neglect of the past and the hope of the present. A report published in June 2016 painted a stark picture — a 64-kilometre road from Ramnagar to Basantgarh with over 65 percent unpaved, no signboards, no retaining walls, ration depots closed, hospitals understaffed and transformers lying damaged for months.
A decade later, while the government has sanctioned around Rs 80 crore for upgrading the Mantalai-Latti-Dudu-Basantgarh road under PMGSY, the honest truth is that PMGSY-scale interventions have consistently proven inadequate for a terrain as demanding, as ecologically sensitive and as strategically important as this one. Litigation between contractors paralysed the funded work for prolonged stretches, and three consecutive rainy seasons passed without meaningful maintenance.
The fundamental lesson from Dudu-Basantgarh is that small road schemes conceived in isolation, without comprehensive planning, without adequate financial scale, and without institutional accountability, will continue to fail communities that deserve far better.
What Dudu and Basantgarh genuinely require is a major, dedicated road project conceived on the scale of a national priority, one that incorporates tunnels and elevated bridges to navigate the difficult topography of this region confidently and permanently.
The route from Ramnagar to Basantgarh is not merely a lifeline for its residents; it is one of the most breathtaking natural corridors in the Jammu region. On this route, travellers encounter RC Top with its sweeping panoramic mountain views, the serene pass of Shiv Gali draped in lush greenery, the quiet interlude of Sanjog, and the rolling, misty heights around Dudu and Basantgarh that offer a refreshing climate and landscapes rarely seen outside the pages of a geography textbook.
The area's pine, deodar, oak, blue pine and fir forests are ancient, dense and irreplaceable. Its mountain streams are so clean and well-oxygenated that the government itself chose this region to establish a trout fish farm at Kirchi in the Dudu block. This is precisely why any major road project here must be planned not merely as a civil engineering exercise, but as an act of careful environmental stewardship, with tunnels and elevated bridges deliberately designed to minimise surface disruption, protect forest cover, preserve natural water flows and reduce the ecological footprint of construction on this fragile Himalayan landscape.
The central government and the Union Territory administration must accordingly sanction a well-funded, properly scoped road and tunnel project for the Ramnagar-Basantgarh-Dudu corridor, moving decisively beyond the incremental PMGSY approach that has left this region perpetually half-connected. Such a project must be preceded by thorough environmental impact assessments, detailed geological surveys accounting for the loose soil conditions and seismic sensitivity of this zone and comprehensive consultation with local communities.
The story of the Marwah, Warwan and Dachan valleys of Kishtwar district carries the same urgent dual message of connectivity and conservation. The green meadows of Marwah, Warwan, and Paddar stretch over rolling hills like a giant green carpet. Clean, shiny streams run through the valleys, with water so clear you can see the pebbles at the bottom. Tall oak trees stand everywhere, giving shade and shelter to birds and animals. What makes this place extra special is the colorful wildflowers that bloom here in huge numbers, you won't find such lovely flower carpets anywhere else!
But, here is also the same old story; This beautiful area remains usually cut off and inaccessible. A 2019 report found that only about 30 of the 74 kilometres separating Marwah from Kishtwar were motorable, that over 50,000 people depended on mules to carry food, and that internet and mobile connectivity were entirely absent. Here too, the direction has changed.
The Khellani-Doda-Kishtwar stretch of NH-244, spanning 112.66 kilometres in nine civil work packages, has seen 47.38 kilometres completed, and the Khellani Tunnel was opened in March 2025, a landmark moment for communities that have waited generations for reliable access. The DPRs for the 12.85-kilometre Sudhmahadev-Daranga tunnel and the 38.61-kilometre Singhpora-Vailoo tunnel on NH-244 have been completed by NHIDCL and are currently at the appraisal stage.
Planned tunnels such as the Chaidraman-Warwan Tunnel carry enormous promise for Marwah and Warwan valleys, whose green meadows and clear streams have no parallel in the region. But the executing agencies must understand from the very outset that the natural beauty of these valleys is not an obstacle to be bulldozed, it is the most valuable long-term asset these communities possess, and it must be protected through pre-construction environmental planning of the highest order, green construction practices and post-construction ecological restoration.
This principle of harmony with nature applies with equal force across all the remote connectivity projects of Jammu and Kashmir. The Himalayan ecosystem is not merely a scenic backdrop, it is a living, breathing infrastructure of its own, one that regulates water supply, prevents soil erosion, sustains biodiversity and moderates climate. Every tunnel bored, every elevated bridge constructed and every road alignment finalised must be preceded by systematic environmental studies, wildlife corridor assessments, hydrological impact analyses.
Executing agencies must pre-position environmental compliance teams alongside engineering teams from the very first day of project mobilisation, ensuring that statutory clearances, waste disposal plans, afforestation commitments and water body protection measures are not merely promised on paper but actively monitored on the ground. Norway, Switzerland, Austria, Japan and China, all countries with demanding mountain terrain, have demonstrated that world-class tunnel infrastructure and intact natural ecosystems can coexist when planning is rigorous, timelines are honest and oversight is independent.
India is fully capable of achieving the same standard, as demonstrated by the Z-Morh Tunnel connecting Sonamarg, the Banihal Tunnel, the Banihal-Qazigund rail link, the Atal Tunnel in Himachal Pradesh and the ongoing Zojila Tunnel, currently around 66 percent complete and expected to be ready by 2028. The infrastructure capability exists. What must accompany it, in every future project, is an equally capable and equally determined commitment to environmental integrity.
Along the Line of Control in North Kashmir, where Gurez, Tulail, Tangdhar, Keran and Karnah face the harshest winters compounded by their strategic sensitivity, significant positive steps are already visible. Gurez, Keran, and Tangdhar are jewels of Kashmir, each wrapped in breathtaking natural charm.
Their lush green valleys, snow-capped peaks, and crystal-clear rivers create postcard- perfect scenery at every turn. The peaceful landscapes and untouched beauty make these places feel serene, magical, and timeless. Together, they offer a rare glimpse of paradise where nature still shines in its purest form.
But, when there is heavy snowfall during winters, these areas are cut off from the rest of the world. During January 2025, when there was heavy snowfall during winters and the road networks were paralyzed, the administration moved promptly to provide subsidised helicopter services for emergencies and essential supplies, and free helicopter and air evacuation services now operate for critically ill patients requiring referral to tertiary hospitals.
Under the PM-ABHIM mission, Block Public Health Units have been sanctioned at Dawer in Gurez, Tangdhar and Teetwal, alongside a Primary Health Centre at Sheikhpora and a new-type PHC at Bhagote, bringing healthcare physically closer to these long-underserved communities. On July 29, 2026, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari informed the Rajya Sabha that consultancy for the Detailed Project Report of the Sadhna Tunnel on the Kupwara-Tangdhar section of NH-701 has been awarded, promising all-weather connectivity for Tangdhar and Karnah. A tender has also been floated for the DPR consultant for the Razdan Pass tunnel that will end Gurez's five-to-six-month winter isolation and cut avalanche risk.
It must be acknowledged transparently that these projects are still at the DPR stage, with construction contracts at least two to three years away, contingent on completion of DPRs, land acquisition, forest clearances and security approvals given the border proximity. However, the fact that the government has initiated these processes is itself a meaningful departure from years of inaction and the momentum must be sustained with environmental safeguards built into the DPR stage itself, not added later as a compliance burden.
For the interim period before these transformative tunnels become reality, seasonal governance planning must become a permanent discipline rather than a reactive scramble. Since monsoon cloudbursts, landslides and winter snowfall arrive with Himalayan regularity, the government should consider deploying the Army and Air Force for pre-planned, scheduled air delivery of essential commodities before each winter and each monsoon season, not as emergency responses, but as a standard, budgeted feature of governance in these areas.
The Army already has a deep and trusted presence in many border areas, and its logistical discipline, helicopter fleet and organisational capability could form the backbone of a reliable supply chain wherever roads temporarily fail. Modern insulated warehouses, grain silos and medicine storage facilities must be constructed in every remote block, enabling stocks of food grains, LPG cylinders, kerosene and medicines to be held for three to six months at a stretch.
Doctors, teachers, PDS officers, engineers and veterinary personnel must be required to reside in the areas they serve, supported by proper incentives and one-year posting tenures after which they would receive postings closer to their native districts, making service in difficult terrain not a punishment but a rewarded act of national service.
The people of Gurez, Keran, Tangdhar, Marwah, Warwan, Dachan, Padder, Nagseeni, Bhales, Gandoh, Dudu and Basantgarh are not asking for privileges. They are asking for the rights the Constitution of India guarantees every Indian citizen, schools with teachers, health centres within reach, medicines without a 15-kilometre walk through snow and an uninterrupted supply of ration, kerosene and cooking gas through every season.
What they also ask, implicitly, by virtue of living in landscapes of extraordinary natural richness, is that the roads, tunnels and bridges built for their dignity do not come at the cost of the forests, streams, mountain passes and meadows that are their heritage and their home. The mountains have always been harsh; what is new is the determination, now visible in DPRs, tenders, sanctioned health units and approved tunnels, to make governance as compassionate as these communities deserve.
The bridges being built are not merely of concrete and steel, but of hope, dignity and a promise that this time, progress will come hand in hand with the responsibility to keep these magnificent valleys, every pine tree, every mountain stream, every mist-covered ridge, as beautiful and alive for the next generation as they are today.
The author is a social activist and environmentalist. He, regularly, writes on social and environmental issues in local newspapers and web portals. Presently, he is convenor of We The Humans Forum for Nature and Mankind