Jammu and Kashmir: Twenty years since the construction of the damaged shrine Charar-e-Sharief in Central Kashmir's Budgam district and Rs 33 crores having been spent till date, the work on a grand mosque is still going on. The Sufi Muslim shrine and mosque situated in the town of Charari Sharief is dedicated to Alamdar-e-Kashmir, Sheikh Noor-ud-Din Noorani. Now, despite having spent crores and almost twenty years in building the shrine, there are cracks being noticed, which is considered as a big negligence on the part of the administration. As of now the mosque has been closed.
The issue of cracks having surfaced in the first floor of the Mosque was noticed by locals after they felt some strange vibrations, and a complaint was raised with the administration. Later a team from NIT Srinagar visited the shrine and observed the cracks which had developed in the concrete slab. A report has been submitted to the administration and the mosque has been closed to avoid mass gatherings.
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According to locals, vibrations in the slab were observed for the past 5 yrs and in 2020 when Manoj Sinha, Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir had visited the shrine, people complained about the issue and the situation of the mosque. It was then that the LG had ordered an audit and directed a team from NIT Srinagar to inspect the construction. When a report to the district administration was submitted saying that the mosque can't handle large gatherings, the mosque was closed. At present, the people are offering their prayers inside a steel shed built nearby the mosque.
Now, people are raising questions as to why the construction quality was not monitored all these years, when such huge amount of money has been spent. They have even appealed to the administration especially Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir to intervene into the matter and set-up an enquiry against those involved in the construction of the mosque.
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It is pertinent to mention here that the Jamia Masjid and Astan-e-Alia along with dozens of residential houses were gutted into flames in 1995 during the gun battle between the Militants and security forces. Following the incident, the then CM of the state had ordered the construction of the Astan-e-Alia and the mosque. It was then that the construction work has begun in the year 2002 and the project was handed over to the Jammu And Kashmir Projects Construction Corporation Limited (JKPCC).
