‘Widen Malout-Muktsar road’: Residents hold foot march

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Muktsar, June 11

Braving the scorching heat, residents of Muktsar district today held a foot march from Malout to Muktsar town. The protesters were demanding that the Malout -Muktsar road should be widened and reconstructed at the earliest.

Activists of opposition parties, including the Congress, the SAD and the BJP, also participated in the protest march.

Sahil Monga, former AAP leader, said, “A number of protests have been held for the reconstruction of the busy national highway. However, the work could not be started as the state government has delayed some clearances. Many lives are lost on this road. We had given a memorandum in this regard a few days ago and held a foot march today. People and farmers have offered their support to the protesters.”

He said, “After the change of guard in the state, Cabinet Minister Baljit Kaur, who is the MLA from the Malout Assembly segment, has given assurances five times that the road construction would begin soon. However, nothing has been done till date. Residents are irked over the delay.”

Meanwhile, Baljit Kaur today said the widening and construction work of the 27.66-km-long Muktsar-Malout road would begin soon.

In a live video on Facebook, she said nearly 3,000 trees would be axed for widening the road. She said, “The work will be completed in 18 months. An amount of Rs 152.58 crore will be spent on the construction of the road, which is a part of the NH 354.”