Smart city’s underpasses turning into hotbeds of drug abuse, crime

Ludhiana: The industrial city of Ludhiana, which is undergoing several new construction projects under the smart city programme, has been unable to maintain already existing structures. The most neglected of these constructions are bridge underpasses.
The Ferozepur bridge underpass, near Rajguru Nagar, is a site of multiple problems. The sewage lines built along the roads, have open lids at several spots making it difficult for commuters to walk. Also, the street lights installed do not work creating unlit alleys for criminal activities like consumption or peddling of drugs.
Satish Shah, a fruit vendor who puts up his stall under the bridge, shared that one day while returning home from under the bridge he saw what he believed to be a group of boys doing drugs in their cars, in the dark unlit part of the underpass.
During rains, waterlogging creates huge puddles causing difficulty for pedestrian and vehicular traffic movement.
Vineet Gupta, a resident of Rajguru Nagar, said, “Although beneficial, due to non-maintenance by concerned authorities, the underpass has eventually turned out to be a site for mutiple accidents due to poor road conditions and broken street lights. Also, it has become a site of drug smuggling and abuse especially during the night.”
Underbridge at Aggar Nagar of no use
The underpass at the entrance of Aggar Nagar was constructed with the purpose of giving the residents of blocks A and B a safe passage and to avoid traffic congestion at the adjacent U-turn. The purpose has not been achieved due to wrong planning which is evident from the fact that it is always deserted when compared to the busy GT Road for which it was constructed. It is instead serving as a open public urinal, garbage dump and a gathering spot for criminals.
It appears that no one from the authorities charged with maintenance of this underpass has ever visited this place. Disfunctional streetlights and broken CCTV cameras have made it a hotbed for criminal activity. The underpass is unsafe to use even during the day time.
Since there is no grill on the GT Road divider to restrain pedestrians from crossing the road instead of using the underpass, people have stopped using it completely. Also, vehicles from the main road and inter block have not been planned to cross the road via the underbridge raising a lot of questions about the actual usability of the underpass.