Kasauli road repair left midway

Ambika Sharma

Tribune News Service

Solan, October 29

The repair of the Sukhi Jori-Sanawar road that leads to Kasauli has been left midway by a private contractor.

No work has been executed on the road since the first week of October and mounds of construction material can be seen piled up on its sides, where a retaining wall was being constructed. The under-construction portion of the road has become a driver’s nightmare as it has been reduced to a single lane.

The situation is so pitiable that even a two-wheeler cannot pass the affected portion as the construction material and machines have been stacked on the road. This has reduced the space available for the motorists.

A portion of the road had caved in during the rains and the work to restore it was started in September. The PWD had closed this road for over a month to facilitate its repair. It was opened for traffic in the first week of October and no work has taken place since.

Solan Deputy Commissioner KC Chaman said he would direct the PWD to expedite its repair as it was the key road leading to Kasauli.

Officials of the PWD were not available for comment despite several efforts.

The National Highways Authority of India had granted Rs 18 crore to the PWD to strengthen three roads — the 29.4-km Parwanoo-Jangeshu-Kasauli-Dharampur road, 13-km Kamli-Bhojnagar road and the 14-km Chakki-Bhojnagar road in view of the four-laning of the Parwanoo-Solan stretch of National Highway-22. These roads were supposed to act as diversions till the four-laning work was complete.

Despite presence of a budgetary provision worth crores, the plight of this road is pitiable. The failure of the officials to ensure completion of this key road is a reflection of their lax approach.

“The state government cannot expect to promote tourism if even the available budget can’t be spent on the upkeep and repair of roads,” said a hotelier, adding poor roads were leading to a decreased inflow of tourists in the area.

Portion reduced to single lane

• No work has been executed on the road since the first week of October and mounds of construction material can be seen piled up on its sides, where a retaining wall was being constructed
• The under-construction portion of the road has become a driver’s nightmare as it has been reduced to a single lane
• The situation is so pitiable that even a two-wheeler cannot pass the affected portion as the construction material and machines have been stacked on the road