Locals demand straight underpass at Dusanjh Khurd railway crossing

A delegation of residents from Dusanjh Khurd and neighbouring villages has submitted a memorandum to Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Phillaur, Prileen Kaur Brar, demanding a revision to the proposed design of the underpass being constructed beneath the railway crossing at Dusanjh Khurd. The group urged authorities to scrap the current 'C'-type design in favour of a straight-through underpass to improve safety and accommodate larger vehicles.

The memorandum-endorsed by the panchayats of Dusanjh Khurd, Muthada Kalan, Kutbewal, Langrian, Muthada Khurd, Bhattian and hundreds of other signatories-also carried the backing of gurdwara committees, youth clubs, various private schools, the Mahindra Tractor stockyard and local units of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Doaba) and Jamhoori Kisan Sabha.

Leading the delegation were local representatives including Sarbjit Muthada, Gurpal Singh (Numberdar), former Sarpanch Harjinder Kumar, Sarpanch Sarvjeet Singh (Bhattian), Rachhpal Lal (Kutbewal), Harbhajan Singh Garewal, Santokh Lal (Langrian), Vijay Kumar, Deepak Bharti, Rajwinder Muthada, Channpreet Singh Boora, Makhan Sangrami (Tehsil President, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Youth Association), Manmohan Singh Sidhu, Sukhpreet Singh, Harminder Singh, Sukhvir Singh Aujla and Davinder Bhinda.

The signatories argued that the current 'C'-shaped design poses serious safety risks, particularly at night, and is unsuitable for the movement of tractors, trailers, sugarcane-loaded trolleys, combine harvesters and large school buses. They pointed out that the width of the link road at Dusanjh Khurd is greater than usual and the railway track is elevated, making a straight-through underpass not only feasible but also more practical.