NOC for 18-ft road plan alongside Sirhind canal

Sukhmeet Bhasin

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, June 21

The Irrigation Department has prepared a plan to construct 18-feet road on both sides of the Sirhind canal.

As per the plan, roads on both sides would be laid from Gobindpura to Teona minor at the Malout by-pass, the distance of which is around 100 mile.

The Irrigation Department has even given NOC to the B&R Department to start the work at the earliest.

Irrigation Department XEN GS Bahia said they had given NOC for the project.

PWD B&R Department XEN Inderjeet Singh said laying of 18-feet wide road on both sides of the Sirhind canal had been approved, which would be laid from the Gobindpura bridge to the Malout road bridge.

The total cost of the project is Rs 7.30 crore and soon the work on it will start.

These roads would provide great relief to the people living in villages along the canal to commute as it would also reduce the distance.

Moreover, these roads would also protect the canal banks from breach.

A senior official of the Canal Department said the canal banks had become weak due to many reasons — rat holes, erosion and damaged roots of the trees situated along the banks.

He said it was dangerous for residents living nearby as anything could happen anytime.

A few days ago during the canal closure, some NGOs and MCB officials cleaned the canal, but it is not enough as it needs repair work and side-lining.

Apart from laying roads, the MCB is also planning to do the beautification of the road along both sides of the canal from the Goniana road to the Janta Nagar railway track by doing world-class landscaping. Residents would be able to walk on this stretch in the morning.