Talhan road in bad shape, residents block highway

Advertisement

Jalandhar, October 22

Residents of various localities near Dhilwan Chowk on Saturday held a protest against the Municipal Corporation and the Aam Aadmi Party government over the poor condition of Talhan road.

The protesters first staged a dharna on the Talhan road, but as officials concerned remained unmoved, they came out on the Jalandhar-Hoshiarpur highway in Rama Mandi and blocked it for some time.

The traffic on both sides of the highway remained affected after which senior police officials and personnel at Rama Mandi tried to persuade the protesters to move away from the spot. However, the protesters didn’t budge and demanded that the officials concerned give an assurance as to when the road will be repaired.

Finally, after Sub-Divisional Magistrate Jai Inder Singh visited the spot and assured the protesters of taking up the matter with higher-ups and getting the road repaired soon, the protesters ended their protest.

Residents said a section of the road from Dhilwan Chowk to a few kilometres ahead had been lying in a pathetic condition for the last over a year. They said they were having a tough time while driving through the road as it’s full of deep potholes and uneven surface.

“Even as the road witnesses’ heavy traffic throughout the day due to the substantial footfall at the gurdwara, the authorities concerned are not getting it repaired. The area councillor and MLA have been making false promises for the past many months, but nothing has happened so far. Therefore, we were forced to come out on road,” said a shopkeeper on the stretch.

He said not only were they facing problems while commuting even their businesses were getting badly affected as customers didn’t stop owing to the poor condition of the road. The protesters threatened to start an indefinite stir on the road if the construction work didn’t start in a few days.

Protesters relent after SDM promises repair work

Sub-Divisional Magistrate Jai Inder Singh on Saturday visited the protest site on the Jalandhar-Hoshiarpur highway in Rama Mandi to placate the protesters. He assured them of taking up the matter with higher-ups and getting the Talhan road repaired soon, following which the protest ended