Bad roads bane for Steel City residents

ROURKELA: AS Rourkela eyes a transformation ahead of the Men’s Hockey World Cup in 2023, there seems to be no end to the problems of commuters as several damaged roads in the city have been dug up for repairs. 

The Rourkela Smart City Limited (RSCL) has taken up repairs of several roads which have been lying damaged for the last three years. The repairs are being undertaken under phase two of the smart city project on the stretch between Bisra Square and Uditnagar on the main road. This apart, 22 other roads will be repaired. These projects, taken up at a cost of `93.49 crore, will be completed by June 2022. 
Currently, the entire stretch of the city’s main road along with the arterial ones are damaged. Dug up for construction of chambers for underground ducting, the main road has narrowed down considerably. 

Haphazard parking of vehicles has only matters worse. He said the repair of the road must not be stopped but the least the local police and Rourkela Municipal Corporation (RMC) can do is to ensure the carriageway is not choked to ensure free flow of traffic. The phase one of the smart city project under which repair of the stretch between Panposh Square and Uditnagar was taken up at a cost of `20.69 crore is moving at a snail’s pace. The project is slated to end in March this year. 

Meanwhile, RSCL CEO and RMC commissioner Dibyajoti Pardia on Friday inspected the smart city projects being implemented in the city. He said the city is undergoing a transformation and the changes will be visible in the next few months.