ANGUL: Activists of Sadak Surakhya Parishad, a newly formed outfit in Talcher, has threatened to go on an indefinite stir seeking four-laning of NH-149 connecting Kaniha to Banarpal chowk.
Construction of an overbridge from Bankadhara chowk to Balhar chowk is another demand of the association. In a letter to Road Transport and Highways minister Nitin Gadkari as well as Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, the outfit highlighted that NH-149 linking Talcher to Banarpal and Kaniha has turned into a graveyard with an alarming number of road accidents claiming lives of commuters.
Every day over 5,000 trucks carry coal from Talcher coalfields to different parts of the state and beyond. Not only the rise of accidents but also acute pollution is a major problem. Advisor of the outfit Keshav Bhutia said Talcher provides significant revenue to the both central and state governments. However, there is lack of development in the industrial belt.