The people residing in eight villages in Krishna district have apparently learnt the art of grin and bear. Their pleas to repair the potholed Jakkampudi- Velagaleru stretch on the outskirts of Vijayawada have fallen on deaf ears.
The road was not recarpeted during the last one and half years. Its condition has gone from bad to worse after recent rains, as the stretch has turned into a virtual pool at various places.
The heavy vehicular traffic was diverted to this about 20-ft road that connects Bhadrachalam in Telangana and the city ever since the Kanaka Durga flyover works began a few years ago. Despite movement of heavy vehicles/ multi axle lorries on this road, steps were not taken to either widen or maintain the existing road properly.
Cause for concern
The residents of Ambapuram, Kandrika, Nayanavaram, Pathapadu, Jakkampudi, Thadepalli, Kothuru Thadepalli, and Velagaleru lament that the government has ‘shown little interest’ in providing a proper road. Repeated pleas to authorities concerned have fallen flat as deep craters and potholes on the road have become a cause of worry for commuters and residents.
Alleging official apathy, villagers say: “Whenever it rains the situation becomes precarious as water accumulates on the road. It becomes difficult to commute due to sludge and deep potholes, which are difficult to locate, after rain.”
Two-wheeler riders and drivers of four-wheelers are always at risk while commuting on the stretch that has more than one-foot-deep potholes. They say that potholes make driving difficult and also increase wear and tear of their vehicles. “The car service centres are openly saying that they cannot offer services to cars from Tadepalli,” says K. Lakshmi Narayana, a senior citizen residing at Kothur Tadepalli.
The volume of traffic increased manifold after the traffic was diverted to facilitate construction of the flyover in the city. There were frequent accidents and deaths. The government washed off its hands by laying speed breakers. The road has not been repaired or widened to suit the highway traffic, he says.
Mylavaram MLA Vasantha Krishna Prasad said the government was looking into the issue. The contractor stopped the work midway. The contractor did works worth about ₹2 crore to ₹3 crore. The project to lay the 12.5-km road was worth about ₹13 crore. Necessary steps would be taken at the earliest, he said.