JAJPUR: Villagers of eight panchayats under Rasulpur block have demanded construction of three vehicular underpasses (VUPs) at two different locations on NH-20 which connects Kuakhia bazaar to Satabhaya in neighbouring Kendrapara district.
On Friday, hundreds of villagers of Sarangpur, Garipur, Ganabag, Sana Orali, Sarifabad, Baransh, Khairabad, Mugpal, Gholapur, Chantapali, Bahadalapur and Govindpur met Jajpur MP Rabi Narayan Behera and a submitted a memorandum in this regard.
“The widening work of NH-20 is being carried out and the highway will be turned into a four-lane road. As six schools and a college are located along the highway between Kuakhia to Mugpal, three VUPs should be constructed at Sarangpur, Baransh and Mugpal for convenience of students,” said the villagers.
If the underpasses are constructed, students as well as the villagers will not have to cross the NH and risk their lives, said Debakanta Nayak,a local.
MP Behera reportedly assured the villagers of taking up their demand with the union minister for Road and Transport and Highways.