Minister inaugurates work on three roads

Mahesh Sharma

Mandi Ahmedgarh, July 31

Power Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO today laid the foundation stones for work on three roads – the 15.70-km Bija-Payal-Jagera Bridge road, the 9.60-km Payal-Issru road and the 2-km link road connecting the Ludhiana-Chandigarh highway with Gurudwara Degsar Sahib.

These roads will benefit residents of at least six Assembly segments, Amargarh, Raikot, Dakha, Gill, Payal and Khanna, of Ludhiana and Malerkotla districts by facilitating travel between Chandigarh and their hometowns. Work on the three roads is expected to be completed within nine months at an estimated cost of Rs 22.56 crore.

Work on the Jagera Bridge road will cost Rs 13.03 crore while on the Payal-Issru road and the Gurudwara Degsar Sahib road will be completed at a cost of Rs 2.37 crore and Rs 7.16 crore, respectively.

The minister said that the condition of all the three roads had been pitiable for many years. Besides joining the region with the state capital, these roads are used by thousands of devotees paying obeisance at various religious places, claimed ETO.

The Bija-Payal-Jagera Bridge and Payal-Issru roads serve as major link between the Ludhiana-Khanna highway to the Ludhiana-Malerkotla state highway, but are dotted with potholes.

ETO said that the state government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is committed to making Punjab a progressive state.

Meanwhile, MLAs Manwinder Singh Giaspura and Hardeep Singh Mundian thanked the minister for inaugurating the projects.

Residents said that they would not be required to burn extra fuel to reach the Ludhiana-Khanna highway once work on the Jagera Bridge-Bija road is completed. “Earlier we had to travel via Ludhiana to avoid the potholed Jagera-Payal-Bija road,” said a resident.

#Harbhajan Singh ETO #Mandi