Team Herald
CANACONA: The National Highway-66 between Gulem and Balli is mostly in the news in recent years for accidents — some of which have claimed lives.
This stretch of NH66 has remained narrow despite a many fold increase in traffic in recent years.
Commuters say that every household in this region has at least one motor vehicle; and hurdles like potholes, blind curves, narrow stretches, overgrown vegetation and huge trees on the shoulder of this road lead to frequent accidents on this stretch.
There are huge patches where the hot mixed asphalt has been washed away due to poor quality of both work and workmanship. These patches have remained unrepaired since last couple of months. It’s risky as motorists, specially two wheeler riders, while negotiating these uneven patches on the road have slipped and injured themselves.
This part of the road comes under PWD, Highways, Margao division.
And with distance from Canacona to Margao being a factor, most of the time the road remains unrepaired of potholes amongst other things. “Every time the bad condition of the road is brought to the notice of the PWD, its officials say that tender has been floated. We are fed up, hence, given up complaining,” lamented a commuter who shuttles daily between Canacona and Margao.
Vishant Prabhu, an activist from Canacona taluka, said that its time the PWD wakes up from its deep slumber and maintains this part of the road; or else, many lives would be lost.
