Road heading towards Saragarhi parking cries for attention

Tribune News Service

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Amritsar, August 23

The elevated road connecting Saragarhi parking for felicitating the travel of pilgrims heading towards the Golden Temple is in deplorable condition. The road is teeming with big potholes. Devotees and tourists heading towards Saragarhi parking face lots of inconvenience as it is the only designated parking lot of the Darbar Sahib where vehicles can be parked.

During recent rains, the size of potholes increased as the upper layer of road washed away. The elevated road was constructed from the bus stand to the Saragarhi parking lot at a cost of Rs 240 crore in 2006-07. During past 17 years, the authorities never recarpeted the road. In the rainy season, potholes filed with rainwater add to woes of commuters. The parking contractor charges Rs 100 for parking a car, but no one takes care of the condition of the road. Devotees don’t have any other option to park their vehicles other than Saragarhi parking in the congested walled area of the city.

Local activists have demanded that the district administration should immediately recarpet the road. “The holy city of Amritsar is one of such place of religious importance where lakhs of devotees come to pay obeisance at the Golden Temple, the holiest of the Sikh shrines, from all parts of the country and world every day. The deplorable condition of the elevated road leaves a bad impression on devotees and tourists,” said Pawan Sharma a social activist.

“The potholed road shows the lackadaisical attitude of the administration towards upkeep of the civic amenities in the city. It seems that the authorities are hardly concerned about mitigating sufferings of commuters keeping in view the present condition of the road,” he said.

“The government should immediately recarpet elevated and other roads leading to the Golden Temple as these are in a poor condition,” said Shavinder Singh, a taxi operator.