VISAKHAPATNAM : Pre-monsoon showers have become a bane for people of many localities in the city. Incomplete road digging works by GVMC for laying pipelines and underground cable and damaged roads, are now leading to accidents and vehicle breakdowns in many areas of the city. Pedestrians too face woes to walk on such roads after rain.
GVMC has given permission to various companies to dig up roads at MVP Colony, Sivajipalem, Akkayapalem, Peda Waltair, Lawson’s Bay Colony, Seethammadhara, Kancharapalem and a few other areas in the city for laying cables for high speed Internet service and water pipelines, but after the works, many roads were left uncovered.
There were many vehicle breakdown incidents in the areas like Akkayapalem, Sivajipalem and Polamamba temple area due to damaged roads by the pre-monsoon showers. In one incident, at Akkayapalem, the locals came forward and pushed a Tata Ace vehicle to the road after it got stuck in a pit which was left uncovered with cables left on the road by the GVMC authorities.
S Nagamma, a local and owner of a pan shop in Abid Nagar, said that the authorities had dug a road in their colony in December last year and they have not relayed it. “After digging and fixing cables, the authorities have left the roads uncovered. It’s been more than six months now. Children and senior citizens are scared to come onto the road during rain. The condition of motor vehicles is even worse, as the tyres get stuck in the muddy potholes,” she added.
The road from the Polamamba temple near III Town PS till the National Institute of Oceanography at the Waltair Junction is said to be one of the areas which was left to fend for itself after digging works for many months, leaving the motorists to suffer. The stretch from Waltair RTC depot to Park Hotel, Doctor’s Colony, Sivajipalem, interior areas of Maddilapalem and people of many more areas face the same fate.
“Not only during rains, it’s tough to drive our vehicles on normal days even. The road stretch from Polamamba temple to the NIO tests a motorist’s skills and patience as the road lies completely damaged and the officials don’t even bother. Is this an example of the smart city?” said N Mohana Rao, a resident of Kirlampudi layout.
The locals alleged that they had even reported about the problem to the GVMC but they seem least bothered about relaying roads.
However a senior GVMC official assured that the road restoration works would be done at the earliest.
