Keller residents demand Degree College
Pulwama: Residents of Keller area in south Kashmir’s Shopian district protested on Monday to demand a Degree College in the area.
Residents including youth of the area blocked Keller-Shopian road while raising slogans in favour a degree college.
A local resident Manzoor Ahmad Sheikh said that a degree college was allotted to the area recently but officials were planning to establish the college in Berthipora area “thereby ignoring the main area”.
He asked authorities to establish that college in main Keller area and threatened if officials tried to establish it elsewhere, they will hit the streets.
He further said that Brethipora, where the college was being established, was nearly 10 km away from main Keller area.
He said main Kellar was “ideal spot for the college establishment as it lies in the center of around 26 villages of the Keller Tehsil”.
“If the college will be constructed in Brethipora village the upper villages of the Tehsil will need to travel around 25 km but if constructed in Keller it will minimise the travel by around 10 kms” the protesting residents said.
They said they had offered government officials free of cost land of around 30 kanals in Keller “but they pay deaf ears to our demand”, added the protesting residents.
Tehsildar Keller, Abdul Rashid said the college had not yet been finalised in Brethipora out of the proposed locations of Brethpora and Zampathri.
To mention, Zampathri is said to be only 2km away from main Keller.
Over the locals of Keller claiming to have offered 30 kanals of land free of cost, Rashid said they were “only making hue and cry about the land and when they are asked to give in writing, no one comes forward.”
Jahangeer Ganaie
