Massive land sinking in Ramban, damages houses, roads and crops

By Yogesh Sharma, Jammu Correspondent

Ramban: A massive land sinking in Pernote village of Ramban district in Jammu and Kashmir has damaged around 40 to 59 houses including roads, TV towers and power lines.

The affected residents have been relocated to the Panchayat Ghar and other safe locations, where the administration provides them with food and medical care.

The Pernote village located approximately six kilometres from Ramban town, has witnessed the land sinking since Friday and has also caused “huge” damage to Agriculture, horticulture, and allied activities in the village.

“The authorities are closely monitoring the situation and remain on high alert. Varunjeet Charak, ADC Ramban, said, ‘Around 50-55 families have been affected Jammu and Kashmir”.

“50-55 families have been affected and all houses in the 1km radius have been damaged- some fully while some partially. The families have been rescued with our prompt action and with the help of quick response teams. NDRF, SDRF, NGOs, and local volunteers have been helping us”.

“Three TV towers have been damaged and the fourth one can also be damaged. Agriculture, horticulture, and allied activities have been affected… We had made a makeshift shelter but because of continuous rains, it has been rendered useless… We have requested the concerned departments to come here and study the causes of this disaster”

The administration is on high alert and is monitoring the situation. Meanwhile, two persons sustained critical injuries at Parnote when they came under a high-tension cable of a transmission tower in Parnote.

They were rushed to District Hospital Ramban, from there both were shifted to Government Medical College and Hospital (GMC&H), Jammu.

The two were identified as Muhammad Hanief Sheikh and Chet Singh, son of Parshi Ram, both residents of Sharore and Parnote. The NDRF team also reached the area to assist the Police, SDRF, and local volunteers.

Ex-Sarpanch Kalasha Devi said, “Yesterday at around 7 pm, first small cracks were seen in the roads. Right in front of us, the road sank almost a foot till 10-11 pm. Around 31 houses have been damaged… Our crops have also been damaged. The grid station has collapsed, and due to this, we do not have electricity. We request the MLA to arrange a temporary stay for the people… More damage may be caused if it rains again…”

The road connectivity between Sangaldan and Gool on the Ramban-Gool road also remained snapped for the second day due to land sinking and the subsidence of a road stretch passing through the area.