Kullu Bar Association president moves HC for urgent repair of Aut-Luhri highway stretch

Kullu Bar Association president Teja Singh Thakur has filed a civil writ petition (CWP) in the Himachal Pradesh High Court, seeking urgent judicial intervention for the repair and widening of the Aut-Banjar-Luhri stretch of the National Highway-305 and undertaking safety measures along it. The petition underscores extensive damage caused to the highway due to the lack of maintenance, leading to numerous accidents.

The petition states that the road was declared a national highway and entrusted to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for development and upkeep. Yet, despite repeated warnings from citizens, social workers and elected representatives, the road has not been repaired in a major way. The petitioner points out that the road is dilapidated, riddled with potholes, cracks, broken signage and landslide-prone patches, rendering it unfit for safe vehicular movement.

The petition details repeated correspondence between government departments throughout 2024 and 2025. In July 2024, the Chief Engineer (National Highways), Public Works Department, wrote to the Regional Officer of the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways seeking his immediate intervention. A month later, Banjar MLA Surender Shourie raised the issue of the worsening condition of the highway with Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari. Several complaints by residents, including letters written by Rakesh Arora of Delhi and social worker Hem Raj of Palach Ghari, flagged hazardous stretches of the highway but no remedial action followed.

The data collected under the Right to Information Act placed on record paints a disturbing picture: between 2020 and 2025, 298 accidents occurred on the National Highway-305 and this number is rising each year. The data procured from the Sub Divisional Police Officer, Banjar, reveals that the Jalodi region alone witnessed multiple accidents, resulting in 20 deaths and injuries to 40 persons during the same period.

The petitioner argues that the highway is a lifeline for the residents of the Banjar, Seraj and Anni constituencies. It also connects major tourist destinations such as the Tirthan valley and Jibhi. The poor condition of this road has severely impacted tourism, emergency travel, agricultural produce transport and even the ability of the litigants to reach courts in Kullu and its subdivisions. The petition contends that such neglect violates statutory obligations under the National Highways Act, 1956, and the responsibilities of the NHAI and the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to ensure safe, motorable roads.

The petition invokes constitutional grounds and urgent public safety concerns and urges the High Court to direct the authorities concerned to repair the highway and undertake its widening within a fixed time. It asserts that the affected citizens are unable to approach court individually, leaving the judiciary as the only avenue for collective relief.