Jammu: Union Minister Jitendra Singh cautioned BJP MLA Shakti Raj Parihar against making “lofty promises” amid the ongoing crisis in Jammu and Kashmir, urging leaders to be frank with people seeking normalcy after recent calamities.
The minister was responding to an X post by the Doda MLA, who claimed he had been assured that fuel supplies would soon reach the region via the Mughal Road to support essential services.
Singh clarified that while he understood Parihar’s concerns, the situation required honesty rather than impractical assurances. “The Mughal Road, blocked for several days, has only just reopened for single-lane movement of light vehicles. Heavy fuel trucks cannot safely pass, and continuous rain could block the road again,” he wrote on X.
The Mughal Road, which connects Poonch and Rajouri in Jammu with south Kashmir’s Shopian district, reopened recently, bringing relief to stranded travelers as the Jammu–Srinagar National Highway remains shut for nearly two weeks due to multiple landslides.
On efforts to restore the highway, Singh said work was attempted at Udhampur’s Thard and Bali Nalah stretches on Sunday night but was stalled by heavy rain. He expressed hope that NHAI would manage to clear at least part of the road by Monday, allowing priority passage for fuel and essential supplies.
Earlier, Parihar had warned that fuel shortages in Doda were creating panic and hampering road restoration efforts in the district.
