Road safety? Slush adds to the woes of commuters

Balwant Garg

Tribune News Service

Faridkot, January 15

At the time when district administration and police officials were attending an event organised to observe Road Safety Week at the auditorium of Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital here on Wednesday, a large number of students, doctors and faculty members were making efforts to remove their vehicles that were stuck in the slush in front of the college after rain.

For laying sewage pipelines in the town, the road to the medical college and hospital was dug up. However, it has not been properly recarpeted after laying the pipelines. The road filled with mud has been turned into a slush after the recent rain. It has become difficult for many people, including students, doctors, faculty members and patients, to use the dug-up road to reach the medical college, Baba Farid University of Health Sciences and residence of doctors.

A senior doctor said choosing the medical college to observe Road Safety Week was a cruel joke with them. Vehicles remained stuck in the slush and it led to a traffic jam. Once got stuck in the slush, many heavily vehicles are posing a threat to medical students, doctors and patients.

The Rs284-crore sewerage project is moving at a snail’s pace due to political tug-of-war. After digging almost all roads in the town, the work on the project remained suspended for over one year due to delay in releasing the funds. The project has already missed its deadline of December 31, 2019. “For showing laxity in completing the project, we have already imposed penalties of Rs10 crore on the contractor,” said Deputy Commissioner Kumar Saurabh Raj.

This month, the Deputy Commissioner had ordered a magisterial probe after a surgeon at the medical college filed a complaint, alleging he had to undergo a spine surgery because of frequently travelling on this dug-up road in the past six month.

‘Choosing college for Road Safety Week a cruel joke’ 

• Students, doctors and faculty members of the Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital were making efforts to remove their vehicles that were stuck in the slush in front of the college after rain. At the same time, the district administration and police officials were attending an event organised to observe Road Safety Week at the auditorium. A senior doctor said choosing the medical college to observe Road Safety Week was a cruel joke with them.