Living in Goa has become a cruel joke. In the name of development, the citizens are being given a harrowing time to go about their daily lives. Talking of major events in this disastrous journey were the massive traffic dislocations during the construction of the Atal Setu, then the second Zuari Bridge, until it was recently inaugurated after around five years, and after that the capital city Panjim that was dug up randomly and haphazardly in the name of the sewage project under the Smart City Mission, leaving its residents and those who come to the city for work or otherwise not having a clue on which roads to take, on any particular day. Add to that the re-surfacing of the Atal Setu now, which has resulted in massive traffic jams for people commuting to Panjim.
The Atal Setu, a white elephant, has been known for quite some time and is eating up money like a sieve for some reason or other. The overall cost of the bridge has reached easily between Rs 800 and 900 crore now, and with no indication of any more funds required here onwards. Simply put, if the surface of the road is not sticking to the underlying concrete structure, then just after the IIT Madras report, a decision should have been taken to convert the surface to concrete. The concrete roads would have met the criteria of good road surface and durability given Goa’s monsoon. The rider in this premise being that the concrete surface should be constructed well. This can still be done once the present exercise taken in hand is completed and its efficacy evaluated, the concrete roads being an alternative plan.
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For short term, until the Atal Setu is fully closed to ease the traffic congestion, do not allow heavy vehicles into Panjim, except public and school buses. A photo in local newspapers dated April 6, shows trucks hogging one lane of the road, they should be allowed during 10 pm to 6 am. This will ease the woes of those on the roads and make their lives a little more bearable.
The Traffic Police advice to factor in more time by commuters on their journey to Panjim is completely irresponsible since they are washing their hands of the matter and leaving commuters to their fate. If agencies such as the Traffic Police, who are at the forefront of managing the problem, do not take responsible action and give sensible advice then one has to ask whether they are fit for their jobs.
There is a need in Goa for the authorities to be more sensitive to the common citizens’ problems and not treat them like the laundryman’s donkey, which under the excessive load of problems will one day exhaust their position and then retaliate or give way completely. Will we see any change in the immediate problem at the Atal Setu in the context of the above?
