VIJAYAWADA: Chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu has offered incentives to developers and contractors who complete construction of highways in the state ahead of schedule.
The chief minister, at a review on Roads and Buildings Department’s work here on Monday, said that those who failed to complete the projects on time would have to face the risk of being black-listed. He was keen that the roads which take two years for completion should be executed within one and half years as they would be play a key role in the reconstruction of the state.
The road projects that Naidu reviewed included Amaravathi Outer Ring Road, Vijayawada- Machilipatnam, Chilakaluripet Bypass, Vijaywada-Gundugolanu, Nandigama Bypass, Kanchikachrala bypass, Nellore-Tada and Nellore-Chilakaluripet. He said that he would review the progress of the projects with the developers and contractors after his return from Davos where he would be attending the four day World Economic Forum summit beginning on January 20.
The chief minister said that he wanted the guest houses and old buildings belonging to the R and B department be transferred to AP Road Development Corporation which would take up construction of multi-storeyed buildings and rent out accommodation to others after keeping some accommodation for the government. He asked the officials to appoint a consultant and get back to him with proposals.
Referring to Durga Temple flyover in Vijayawada, the chief minister wanted the officials to ensure that it was completed in all respects before Krishna pushkarams this year. “Soma, the company which has been entrusted with the work, should meet the deadline, come what may,” he pointed out.
The chief minister also wanted finalisation of the design of the road that cuts through the villages in the capital region. He pointed out that 10 highways need to be laid for the Visakha-Chennai industrial corridor within the next two years with an investment of Rs.3,982 crore for a total distance of 419 km.
When the officials pointed out that they would require Rs.109 crore for maintenance of highways, Naidu said he would release Rs.50 crore immediately. He was unhappy with the way the highways were being maintained and wanted the contractors concerned blacklisted. He wanted the national highways authority officials to make use of the latest technology to ensure that the roads are not uneven with ups and downs. He wanted them to use the technology on an experimental basis for 100 km to make them even-surfaced.
The chief minister asked the officials to ensure that GPS would cover 50,000 km of roads in the state. He wanted plantation on either side of the roads that are being laid new.
The officials told the chief minister that by the end of this month, detailed project report would be ready for the highway to be laid between Amaravati and Bangalore. The design would have provisions for connectivity to important towns in Rayalaseema including Anantapur, Kadapa and Kurnool.
Those who took part in the review meeting included R and B Special Chief secretary B Sambob, National Highways chief GM J Chandrasekhar Reddy and Chief Engineer R Gopalakrishna.