NILGIRIS: Residents of O-Valley panchayat near Gudalur raised accusations over the "poor quality of work" carried out by the state highways department, after a bitumen road on the Gudalur-Arottuparai stretch was damaged a week after it was laid. They alleged that poor quality materials were used for the work, citing that vehicle tyre marks are already visible on the bitumen surface of road, and urged the department to direct the contractor concerned to soon repair the road.
The residents also claimed that, despite the presence of highways officials, the road-laying work was not properly monitored. O-Valley Makkal Iyakkam coordinator R Ranjith said, "Not just for a few metres, several portions along the seven-kilometre stretch of the Arottuparai road are in a poor condition. The work was taken up by the highways department after a gap of eight years. We faced severe hardship during the rainy season due to slippery surfaces and potholes. After filing repeated petitions to the district administration, local bodies, and the highways department, and crossing legal hurdles, we got a proper road finally, but it's now unusable." Further, the organisation urged the department to widen the Gudalur-Arottuparai and Gudalur-Periyasholai roads and consider using cement mixture to strengthen the road.
Meanwhile, a state highways department official, when contacted, refuted the allegations and said, "Not the entire Arottuparai stretch, only portions along the edges of the bitumen road have been exposed at some places, and we are planning to fill these portions with concrete." The official insisted that quality materials were used in the construction of the road, and said, "We were unable to remove the existing soil and level the road due to restrictions imposed by the forest department, as the area falls under Section 17 land." The official added that the department has been planning to widen the 3.75-metre road by one metre on either side, the work for which would be taken up post-monsoon season.
