Chandigarh Civic body couldn’t complete over 50% of road repair work, be ready for a bumpy ride

Road work worth Rs 45 crore was to be done in the first phase. However, officials said that the work could not be completed due to the lockdown and the ongoing monsoon.

City residents will have to continue to suffer on potholed roads for another two months as the road repair work has stopped due to the monsoon. The civic body has said that only 50 per cent of the work has been completed until now.

Road work worth Rs 45 crore was to be done in the first phase. However, officials said that the work could not be completed due to the lockdown and the ongoing monsoon.

The city roads have been giving commuters a tough time; and now with the work left halfway, commuters are even more harried.

Chief Engineer of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation, Shailender, said that the staff has been ordered to fill in and complete patchwork in places with potholes, so that commuters are not troubled till the work begins again. “Hopefully work should start by September 15. If we carry on the work now, the road’s life won’t be very long. But we have ordered the staff to carry out patchwork wherever there are potholes,” he said.

The city roads have been in a bad shape since last July. Initially, the civic body cited a shortage of funds and when funds came by in December, the work was halted due to winters. Later, when work was scheduled to begin again, the coronavirus pandemic broke out.

Councillors had been suggesting to carry out the road work during the lockdown period, like in the case of the Kharar flyover, as traffic was not heavy during the time. However, the corporation cited a labour shortage. The MC added that only priority works are being taken up during the pandemic.

During April, Municipal commissioner KK Yadav had said that the labour has to be in situ during any repair or construction work and added that it is not feasible in case of building roads in Chandigarh. When work began later, it was too slow.

Congress councillor Devinder Singh Babla said that residents have been put to inconvenience for the last one year now. “Will the Municipal Corporation be responsible for any breakage in the vehicles that people are facing due to bad roads? Why can’t officials be sensitive?” he asked.