Time for residents to awake from slumber
Rachna Khaira
Tribune News Service
Jalandhar, April 5
As the Jalandhar Municipal Corporation is drawing wrath from public, area councillors and the Opposition, over the pitiable condition of roads in the city, Jalandhar Tribune takes a walk at some of the city roads and found that along with the Municipal Corporation, lackadaisical attitude of the general public is also responsible, to an extent, for the wretched condition of roads.
Illegal digging of roads
A major cause for the early damage is the illegal digging on roads. No matter when the roads were constructed, majority of the residents do not hesitate to dig them up according to their needs. While some have excavated the road for fixing tents for weekly ‘bazaars’, others have dug them from the centre to pitch in ceremonial tents. Politicians, too, dig roads to pitch in tents for functions and public meetings and the openings kept lying unattended forever. Some private companies, in connivance with the MC officials, and area councilors, too dig the roads for laying of the underground communication lines.
Illegal constructionsand ramps
Illegal construction of buildings and ramps outside the houses also cause early damage to roads. Residents have encroached upon half of the road from both sides leaving little space for the vehicles to move. Water gush out from houses on roads through these ramps that after getting absorbed through the porous bitumen and openings left by theillegal digging.
Encroachment onroadside drains
Residents have even encroached upon the roadside gullies meant to gush out rain water or overflowing sewerage to extend the area of their houses and shops causing stagnation of rainwater and overflow of sewerage that slowly gets absorbed in the road and damage it. Majority of the residents, in order to keep their house dry, wash their vehicles on the roadside and do not hesitate to throw the left out water on the road.
Scattered garbage
Even after the implementation of the first phase of the solid waste project in the city, residents still don’t follow the hygienic practices of garbage disposal and dispose them in the open. The non-soluble litter like plastic and construction material chokes the roadside drains and cause further stagnation of water.
Haphazard parking
Despite few of the parking areas available in the city, people prefer to park vehicles on already congested roads, causing a lot of commotion to other commuters.
- Some startling statistics of road engineering in city (according to MC records)
- Average cost of laying a km of road: 12 lakh
- Cost of bitumen/asphalt (Luk) : Rs 38,000 per metric tonne.
- Best roads of the city (According to MC record)
- Press Club to railway station
- Laadowaali road: BSF Chowk to Alaska Chowk
- Worst roads of the city (according to MC record)
- Bus stand
- Mahavir Marg
