Across Goa we come across such examples of shoddy work, but this one, so soon after it was completed, is particularly glaring. The authority that over sees projects has to step in and pull up the contractor for the work, and also the government has to hold accountable the team that cleared the road work as meeting the standards and allowing it to be opened for traffic.
There has to be some measure of seriousness among government departmetns when projects are undertaken using public money. In this case, there apparently was very little planning that went into the project. This road has had a series of issues assciated with it, beginning with road engineering. The Curti to Kerya segment has been widened to four lanes with the construction taking almost three years. The fact that the elevated road had been constructed by filling a valley with mud had raised concerns among the residents of the area. Their apprehensions were not taken into consideration. The road is at a height of 14 metres, which itself should have led to tighter controls, but apparently it has not.
The service road, the villagers allege, has been directly laid over mud, without any rubber soling, that has led to it getting washed away. Was there any measure of control in this project? The residents of the area had themselves inspected the road and expressed ther displeasure over the sub-standard work which had led to their houses getting flooded and the main road and service road developing cracks. They had raised concerns on whether this stretch of the road would bear the pressure of the monsoon and this latest incident of the road caving in, only proves that the concerns raised were not without reason.
The villagers had earlier this month pointed out that last year there had been a landslide due to lack of planning the road and vertical faulty hill cutting, which had led to the closure of the highway for two weeks. They had specifically feared that the road could sink or cave in. And this is exactly what happened.
If non-technical persons could predict that this road was badly constructed, why couldn’t the experts in the government? A major question here is whether there is any monitoring of the quality of materials used by road contractors and also of the quality of the work being undertaken. Apparently there is not, otherwise this road would not have caved in just a short time after it being opened. This is a perfect example of how people’s money is wasted with no accountability whatsoever. It is a perfect example of corruption and calls for an immediate inquiry by the Vigilance Department. But will there be any action by the government to bring those responsible to book? Or will be another perfect example of how such deeds are hushed up in government circles?
Look at it again. A month after it was thrown open to traffic, parts of the road have caved in and parts of it have got washed away. Hasty repairs have been conducted with concrete poured in to cover the cracks, but what about the long-term durability of the road? Will there be any permanent measures undertaken to strengthen the road, or will the authorities depend on patch work only? If the first rains led to a cave in, the fury of the monsoon is yet to be felt. What effect will the coming showers of rains have on the road? Hopefully the road won’t fully cave in.
