Unfinished works force suspension of traffic

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, January 29

The movement of vehicular traffic on the Rambagh-Jehangir Chowk flyover, which was thrown open to public in August last year, got suspended today. The traffic was suspended from the Jehangir Chowk to Magarmal Bagh stretch due to unfinished repair works even as it raised eyebrows among locals.

“Why was the flyover thrown open in the first place if works were not complete? Though the flyover was open for the past few months, we could notice unfinished works at several places. We all know the flyover had missed several deadlines and it seems the authorities were in a hurry to inaugurate it. The flyover had given a little respite from jams, but now it will cause massive jams again,” said Ubaid Bhat, a city resident.

The much-touted Asian Development Bank (ABD) funded 2.4 km flyover project was announced with much fanfare by the then government in 2009, but the work started finally in September 2013 with a three-year deadline for its completion. The full stretch of the project, executed by the J&K Economic Reconstruction Agency (JKERA), was finally thrown open in August last year after missing several deadlines.

The flyover had also become a butt of jokes on the social media as works got delayed due to various reasons, ranging from rehabilitation issues of affected shopkeepers to the devastating September 2014 floods. Nearly six-month-long 2016 unrest too caused disruption in works later that was followed by issues related to the mobilisation of non-local workers in 2017.

A JKERA official said traffic on the Jehangir Chowk-Magarmal Bagh will remain suspended for a week due to pending repair works. “Presently, we are undertaking vital construction works for a week on expansion joints due to which the traffic movement was suspended,” the official said.