6,179 km of roads in bad condition, admits govt

The state government had committed to repairing all roads by June 2025, however, in the Vidhan Sabha, it has admitted that 6,179 km of roads are in a “bad condition”. In reply to a starred question from Mullana Congress MLA Pooja, Public Works (Building and Roads) Minister Ranbir Gangwa submitted that his department was maintaining 30,717 km road length, of which 314 km was national highway and 1,638 km state highways.

He added, “The roads under Defect Liability Period (DLP), having a length of 15,435 km, are being maintained by contractual agencies. During monsoon, new potholes/patches develop, which are being repaired through the agencies regularly.”

The road length out of DLP is 11,481 km, which is maintained at the departmental level. Of this, 5,302 km of roads are in a satisfactory condition. “The ongoing works are in progress on 3,487 km length and the same will be completed by December 31,” informed Gangwa.

On the “bad condition” roads, he said 6,179 km length of roads that required improvement was approved under Work Programme 2025-26 on April 1. “Tenders for these roads have been invited, and work will be taken up from September and will be completed by March 31, 2026. The programme also covers the widening of 1,275 km length from 12 ft to 18 ft,” he added.

The CM had directed officials to complete repair work on all damaged roads by June 15. “Earlier, the government had committed to repairing all roads by June, but now they have set a new deadline of March 31 in their reply. When will this ‘jumlebaazi’ end?” asked Pooja.

“There is an admission that out of 11,481 km of road length maintained departmentally, 6,179 km is in bad condition. It is 53.8 per cent of the total length. There is no mention of the amount to be spent on repairs. It is not clear whether the department has the money,”  she added.