THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Even after partial lifting of the lockdown, PWD authorities are unable to restart construction and tarring of crucial corridors in the capital city. Around 10 road projects worth `20 crore have been hit hard by the lockdown. With monsoon fast approaching, PWD authorities have landed in a fix and are apprehensive about completing the work by the end of May.
According to officials, though the state government has given the nod for reopening crusher units and construction activities, the district administration is yet to give clearance for the transportation of materials. A senior official with the PWD said that the lockdown has come as a huge blow to road works which were fast progressing. “We had to leave many projects halfway following the lockdown. All of them were major BM&BC (Bitumen Macadam and Bitumen Concrete) road projects. We are yet to lay the top layer for some roads but are hoping to resume work this week,” said the official. However, mobilising workforce is going to be a challenging task.
“Many of the workers come from the outskirts of the city and because of the lack of transportation, it would be a challenge for them to turn up for work. We have made almost all of our roads motorable before the lockdown,” the official added. Unavailability of cement is also becoming a major concern for completing projects on time. “Normally, the cement is sourced from Tamil Nadu and other states. But there is a shortage of construction materials in the market because of the lockdown.
In Kerala, we don’t have many cement manufacturing companies,” said the official. When contacted, a top official of the district administration said that they haven’t received any applications from PWD seeking passes for vehicles or workers. “After the partial lifting of the lockdown, we had issued several passes for labourers and others involved in construction activities. We are ready to give passes for the workers involved in road construction but PWD hasn’t approached us,” said the official.