PWD, KWA at loggerheads over road digging

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Though Public Works Minister P A Mohamed Riyas had promised that his department and the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) would work together to avoid digging up roads after tarring, the unhealthy practice is still in practice in many parts of the state. It seems the PWD and KWA are still at loggerheads over the issue, while motorists and commuters are at the receiving end.

For instance, the KWA recently dug up a tarred road from Balaramapuram to Vazhimukku Junction, causing inconvenience to motorists. The 1-km stretch is already a bottleneck and has been lying in a pathetic state for quite some time now. The road, which comes under the PWD, was refurbished in October, and it was a welcome move. However, the KWA dug up the road at least thrice to repair burst pipes. Above all, the KWA only patched the portion of the road rather than relaying bitumen.

Earlier, Riyas had blamed KWA for failing to repair roads which they had dug up to lay pipelines and to repair pipe bursts. He said restoration of roads to their previous state is the responsibility of the KWA. The minister’s reaction came a day after the Kerala High Court directed the authorities concerned to repair roads.

“It is disturbing to see a good road being dug up for pipeline work. It is rampant in many parts, and apparently, the roads get defaced due to this unhealthy practice. Both PWD and KWA are responsible for restoring the roads. Planning of road development is a must. Such planning prevented the main roads in Thiruvananthapuram under the City Road Improvement Programme from being dug up unnecessarily,” said Anil Kumar Pandala, a road development expert and former project director of TRDCL (Thiruvananthapuram Road Development Company Limited).

An order issued by the state government in 2017 pointed out that if KWA digs up the roads for drinking water purposes, it has the responsibility to restore them to their former state. Last year, PWD and KWA had a mutual agreement that the departments would coordinate to prevent the unscientific digging up of roads. On January 7, 2022, a special committee comprising PWD and KWA officers, was also formed. The committee also prepared guidelines for effective coordination between the departments. Later, the committee came forward with a proposal to introduce trenching technology.

A KWA senior engineer told TNIE that the KWA is digging roads wherever the sewer pipes burst, ensuing seepage and leakage of water. “There is no other option. We will have to dig up roads if a pipe bursts. But we are not laying pipes if the roads are in a good condition. If any such practices are found, we will surely look into it,” the official said.

Meanwhile, according to a top official of the PWD, the KWA can dig up the road only with prior approval from the PWD, and they are fully responsible for restoring the road to its former state after repair work.
“Right now, the PWD gives permission to dig up roads only for repairing pipe bursts. The KWA is not authorised to dig up roads for relaying pipes if the roads are in good condition. So if the KWA has not restored the road to its original state even after the work, the PWD will take action accordingly, the official said.