Caitu says PWD made no provision for a wide road
TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
MARGAO: The long-delayed Assolna-Cavelossim bridge over river Sal is finally expected to be complete either by July end or early August if ones goes by the latest PWD deadline.
Sadly, a spacious road linking the bridge to Cavelossim is yet to take shape till date. Fears are raised that the bridge will bring in huge volume of traffic once it is thrown open to traffic. Doubts are being expressed in many quarters whether the existing road will bear the traffic load heading to the coastal village.
Benaulim MLA Caitu Silva lamented that the PWD made no provision for a wide road on the Cavelossim side when the bridge project was conceptualised and executed. “That the bridge would bring in additional traffic to Cavelossim was an open secret. It is an admitted fact that the existing three-meter narrow road will not suffice to meet the requirements. I inquired with the PWD engineers on the matter, and they had no answer on the road,” Caitu said. The MLA has now suggested widening of the existing road wherever possible till an alternative is put in place.
The Cavelossim gram sabha at its meeting held on Sunday has now proposed an eight-meter wide road, but doubts are raised that the proposed road will take years to materialise, given the time-consuming land acquisition process and the actual construction of the road.
Says Cavelossim Sarpanch Viola D’Costa: “The panchayat had during the previous body had passed a resolution for a bypass, starting from the border of Cavelossim-Carmona to the bridge. But, the width of the bypass was not decided. Now the gram sabha has resolved in favour of an eight-meter wide bypass.”
PWD Executive Engineer, V S Mardolkar, said the PWD expects the Assolna-Cavelossim bridge to be complete in all respects either by July end or August. “We have set the deadline on the contractor to complete the bridge within the time frame.”
