Team Herald
PONDA: With monsoons around the corner, locals in Ponda have questioned the timing of the road digging work, which is currently underway.
Against the backdrop of past monsoons where commuters were at great risk with the dug up roads, Ponda locals are worried that these roads, like in the past, won’t be restored in time. Laying of sewerage network pipelines, domestic gas supply pipelines are the reasons behind the current work.
When it comes to the laying of the pipeline network for the Sewerage Treatment Plant (STP), locals have questioned the amount of time it is taking and point out that it has been going on for the last two years. Pointing out that the presence of rubble and mud on the ‘un-even’ roads has caused great hardships to the locals, especially pedestrians and bike riders. They also point out that it’s causing vehicles to constantly swerve right and left to avoid the rubble on the road but that such movement could lead to accidents.
Sandesh Naik, who travels to the city everyday from Curti, recalled that the government had earlier declared that all the roads in city would be hot mixed only after the sewerage work is completed. He demanded that government should at least repair the roads where work is completed. “Development work is required but it should be done in a planned manner as currently it is the citizens and commuters who are suffering,” he added.
Locals further point out that during the last two years, the roads have deteriorated as they have not been maintained and have called for the numerous potholes atleast to be repaired before the monsoons begin.
The Ponda Municipal Council has put the onus on the Election Commission and has said they are waiting for permissions. PMC Chairperson Pradeep Naik and councillor Venktesh Naik said that at many places, sewerage work is completed and they had received an NOC for hotmixing of these sections of the road from the Sewerage Department. “Even tenders for hotmixing of the roads are ready. We had requested the Election Commission to give us permission for undertaking this work as the code of conduct is in force. As soon as we get permission from the EC and also from the PWD, roads where the sewerage network lines are completed will be hotmixed immediately,” said the PMC chairperson.
