Divisional Commissioner, Jammu Dr Raghav Langer today conducted an extensive tour of the Mansar and Surinsar area of District Udhampur and discussed the Rejuvenation plan for the twin Lakes- one of the main tourist attractions of Jammu region.The Divisional commissioner also visited historical Samba fort and reviewed its restoration and beautification plan.District Development Commissioner, Udhampur, Indu Kanwal Chib; Director Tourism Jammu, Vivekananda Rai; ADDC Jammu Ramesh Chander, CEO SMDA, and Dr Gurvinderjeet Singh who along with senior officers and PRI members accompanied the Div Com during the tour of Mansar area.During the spot inspection of the twin Lakes, the Div Com discussed in detail the issues related to Land acquisition for development of new assets, demarcation of Lake area, LT line shifting, Provision of cycle track, Parking facilities, construction of Khuls, Desilting, Surinsar park, Inherent wildlife department issues, Land for liquid /solid waste management, Identification of land for wellness center, Appointment of consultant, Establishment of Tourist facilitation centre at Mansar, Tuck shop, development of view points, shifting of fishes (introduced species), Bio Toilet facility etc.Earlier, Director Tourism gave a detailed resume on account of Mansar rejuvenation development plan.
While reviewing the Surinsar Development Plan, the Divisional Commissioner directed the revenue authorities to start the demarcation of the lake area at an earliest. The department was asked to hold meetings with stakeholders to resolve issues regarding land acquisition. The ADDC was also asked to convene a meeting with all stakeholders and flag all the issues related to disposal of waste.Regarding LT line overhead, the Div Com directed the concerned authorities to explore the option for taking it underground to maintain the natural beauty of the lake. He further directed the tourism department to immediately repair the sitting decks.During the tour, the Div Com asked the concerned to keep the provision of developing cycle track in the plan proposal, which would act as added attraction for the tourists. He asked the concerned for construction of Khuls at Sagoon to restore the centre of Devika. He also directed the concerned department to discuss sequencing of the shops with stakeholders and hire a project consultant.The Tehsildar was asked to identify 20 kanal land each for the establishment of a parking lot at wellness centre and Tourist facilitation centre at Mansar.The Div com also inspected various assets in Mansar and took a boat ride to examine the issues raised by the locals about the ecological well being of the Lake. He directed for immediate repair of the damaged Retaining wall around the lake and temple.Later, the Divisional Commissioner visited the historical Samba fort and reviewed its conservation plan. During the visit, Director Tourism, Vivekananda Rai, Deputy Commissioner, Samba, Anuradha Gupta; besides other district officers were also present. The samba fort is situated on a small hillock about half a KM away from National Highway and 37 KM from Jammu and is in commanding position overlooking river Basantar.The Divisional Commissioner took a round of Fort and inspected the restoration works required in the fort. The Divisional Commissioner directed the Tourism Department to pursue the Detailed Project Report for conservation of Historical Samba Fort.Additional Deputy Commissioner, Samba, Suram Chand Sharma, Assistant Commissioner Revenue Jitender Mishra, officials from tourism Department besides officials from district administration Samba, were also present.