Bidhannagar civic authorities trip on road maintenance
May 2010:
As yet another election campaign hits the bumpy trail in Salt Lake, an old question has started doing the rounds — will yet another civic poll and a new board finally result in better roads? Patchwork, hasty and slipshod at that, is all that successive Left Front-run boards have done for the last three terms.
Complaints always poured in about large craters dotting roads in the township, but little was ever done. Piecemeal repairs were undertaken just before the Pujas to spare pandal hoppers the bumps but the haphazardly-laid bitumen tops on the repaired stretches would get eroded in just months.
Things have not improved much since 2001-2002 when the opposition Trinamool held a massive agitation against the poor condition of roads, strewing water hyacinths on potholes and blocking First Avenue Road at PNB Island. A few years ago, the Bidhannagar civic authorities — crippled by severe funds crunch due to their inability to collect property taxes — urged the state urban development authorities to take up maintenance work of all important main roads like First Avenue, Broadway and Cross roads.
Considering the situation, it was decided that KMDA would be entrusted the job. But the lot of the Salt Lake residents hardly changed. Looking at the poll prospects, finance minister Asim Dasgupta — himself a resident of the township — granted a few crore rupees last year to repair the most damaged stretches. Some important roads, like the one in front of Poura Bhavan, the Broadway that connects Netaji Statue near Karunamoyee to EM Bypass, and Salt Lake Bypass underwent major repairs. A few stretches were layered with mastic asphalt (which has long been a common feature in other parts of Kolkata and its outskirts). But go to large areas of the township and you will still have a bone-rattling ride. First Avenue and First Cross Road have large craters.
Present chairman-in-council member Nandogopal Bhattacharya, however, insists the civic body has always given top priority to the upkeep of roads. “Looking after the roads of the township has always been one of our topmost priority. The present civic board allotted Rs. 8 crore for repair and maintenance of the township roads. In fact, roads in Salt Lake are in much better shape than many places in the city. KMDA will repair seven major thoroughfares of the township with funds from Bidhannagar municipality”, he said.
Source: MagicBricks | Back to Realty News