World Bank okays Rs585 crore for upgrading roads in state

Tribune News Service

Shimla, April 24

The World Bank (WB) has approved Rs 585 crore for the Himachal Pradesh State Roads Transformation Project (HPSRTP), which envisages upgrade of major roads and modernisation of the Public Works Department (PWD), said Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur here on Thursday. He presided over a meeting to review the functioning of the PWD.

Thakur said that the work on various roads such as Barotiwala-Baddi-Sain-Ramshehar (45 km), Dadol-Ladraurr (14.5 km), Mandi-Riwalsar-Kalkhar (28 km) and Raghunathpura-Mandi-Harpura-Bharari (3.5 km) would be undertaken in tranche one.

The meeting was informed that a target to construct 900 km of roads was fixed for 2019-20 but 800 km roads could be built.

The Chief Minister said the construction and maintenance of road projects in the state had been adversely affected due to the lockdown. He added that efforts should be made to renew targets, taking a realistic view of the situation. Local labour should be optimally utilised so that the work on ongoing projects could be expedited.

He said that the state government had decided to allow inter-district movement of trucks carrying construction material from mining sites to project areas. He added that the government would soon consider opening of hardware shops so that works do not hamper due to want of construction material; inter-district movement of road construction machinery to the construction sites would also be considered.

Thakur said the government would also think over allowing the movement of field staff as the jurisdiction of the National Highways Division was in more than one district. Special thrust would be laid on maintenance and repair of roads, he added.

A target to construct 4,960 km of roads had been fixed under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana for 2020-21; an allocation of Rs 1,666 crore had been made for it, he said.