Criticized by motorists from Goa and Belgaum due to its dilapidated condition, the Belgaum-Goa highway NH4A via Khanapur and Londa has also been witness to a number of agitations by locals demanding urgent repairs of the road.
The protests may well have had the desired results, with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) expected to commence repairs of the NH4A within a fortnight.
Commuters and citizens of Belgaum, Khanapur and Londa who have been waiting for years for the up-gradation and repairs of the NH 4A, had been up in arms against the indifferent attitude of NHAI authorities.
Staging a recent two-hour road blockade agitation at Ramnagar, residents had warned NHAI authorities of intensifying their agitation for their long-pending demand to repair the dilapidated portion of the road and the subsequent four-laning of the 84 km stretch of the Belgaum-Anmod road.
After having turned a blind eye to these agitations, the NHAI now seems to have taken up the matter seriously. Bowing to the demand of the people, NHAI is expected to take up the repairs of the NH4A highway.
It may be recalled that the NHAI had taken up the four-laning and two-laning work of the NH4 A, the age-old link between Belgaum and Goa.
The process to acquire land along the 84-km stretch had commenced since 2011 and trees along the Ganebail-Zadshahapur stretch were also cut and residents were hopeful about the early commencement of the road-widening work.
According to NHAI sources, the work, which was awarded to a Chennai-based company, would include the four-laning of about 25 kms from Belgaum to Khanapur and two-laning of the remaining highway.
But much to the disappointment of motorists and locals, nothing moved beyond the initial work. Citing difficulties in land acquisitions and clearances from forest and wild life authorities, NHAI preferred to remain silent over the issue and commuters were forced to travel on the highway, which deteriorated rapidly over time.
“We warned the NHAI of intensifying our agitation in case the repair work did not get underway,” Londa Gram Panchayat president Swati Sutar, who was heading the recent rasta roko agitation, told Herald.
When contacted, the project director Lt Col A K Janbaz told Herald that yielding to the demand from commuters, the NHAI Dharwad office has carried out the survey to undertake the repairs and a report had been submitted to higher authorities for approval.
“We feel sorry for the dilapidated state of the highway. Repairs are expected to commence within the next fortnight. We have also sought clearance from forest and wild life authorities to take up the road-widening work. We are taking up the matter with state government and we look forward to the commencement of the road-widening work at the earliest,” Lt Col Janbaz said. He added that people will be kept informed about the development.
