Governments urged to expedite widening work on NH66
- Published in Mangaluru
- Comments::DISQUS_COMMENTS
The Save National Highway 66 Committee has urged the Union and State governments to expedite the widening work on the Kundapur-Talapady stretch of the highway.
In a release here on Saturday, B. Govindraj Hegde, convenor of the committee, said that as per the original terms, the Navayuga company that had taken up the widening (four-laning) works of the 91-km Kundapur-Talapady stretch, should have completed the work at a cost of Rs. 671 crore within 910 days from March 2010.
Since the work could not be completed by that time, the time limit for completion of the work was extended by 313 days to January 15, 2014. Now the company was saying it would complete the work by April 2015. But the slow pace of the work meant that it would take longer than that, because the company had not yet started work on full scale.
Domino effect As a result, many major works on the Kundapur-Talapady stretch have seen little or no progress. The construction of the flyover in Kundapur, which was to be completed by April 2014, was progressing at snail’s pace.
Of the nine major bridges on the stretch, the work on seven bridges was nearing completion. Though the authorities had promised to throw open these seven bridges for vehicular movement by June 2014, not a single bridge had been opened.
The widening work had still not been started at Karavali Junction in Udupi. The widening work in Kaup was slow, while the issue of bypass road had still not been resolved in Padubidri.
Though the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) had agreed to dismantle the ramp constructed in Brahmavar following opposition from local people, the dismantling work was progressing slowly.
In some places, the widening work had not yet started in Udupi district because of land acquisition problems.
The committee demanded that the government and NHAI should issue directions to the company to complete the widening work as soon as possible.
The ramp at Brahmavar should be dismantled immediately, they said.
Since the widening work had not been completed even after four years, the people who had lost their land for highway widening should be compensated at the present market rates, if the works could not be expedited. Else, the land should be returned to its original owners.
Toll fee Until the widening work was completed, toll fee should not be collected from the users of the highway. If immediate action was not taken on these demands, the committee would launch an agitation, Mr. Hegde said.
In a release here on Saturday, B. Govindraj Hegde, convenor of the committee, said that as per the original terms, the Navayuga company that had taken up the widening (four-laning) works of the 91-km Kundapur-Talapady stretch, should have completed the work at a cost of Rs. 671 crore within 910 days from March 2010.
Since the work could not be completed by that time, the time limit for completion of the work was extended by 313 days to January 15, 2014. Now the company was saying it would complete the work by April 2015. But the slow pace of the work meant that it would take longer than that, because the company had not yet started work on full scale.
Domino effect As a result, many major works on the Kundapur-Talapady stretch have seen little or no progress. The construction of the flyover in Kundapur, which was to be completed by April 2014, was progressing at snail’s pace.
Of the nine major bridges on the stretch, the work on seven bridges was nearing completion. Though the authorities had promised to throw open these seven bridges for vehicular movement by June 2014, not a single bridge had been opened.
The widening work had still not been started at Karavali Junction in Udupi. The widening work in Kaup was slow, while the issue of bypass road had still not been resolved in Padubidri.
Though the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) had agreed to dismantle the ramp constructed in Brahmavar following opposition from local people, the dismantling work was progressing slowly.
In some places, the widening work had not yet started in Udupi district because of land acquisition problems.
The committee demanded that the government and NHAI should issue directions to the company to complete the widening work as soon as possible.
The ramp at Brahmavar should be dismantled immediately, they said.
Since the widening work had not been completed even after four years, the people who had lost their land for highway widening should be compensated at the present market rates, if the works could not be expedited. Else, the land should be returned to its original owners.
Toll fee Until the widening work was completed, toll fee should not be collected from the users of the highway. If immediate action was not taken on these demands, the committee would launch an agitation, Mr. Hegde said.
Tagged under
- NH66
- Government
