Tamil Nadu - Salem   

Roads in Salem still have gaping potholes

Staff Reporter

Rs. 38-cr. project dormant; No bidders yet for tenders

MAKE IT MOTORABLE: The Salem Corporation has taken up patchwork as roads in Salem remain battered after rain. — Photo: P.Goutham

SALEM: The road users' ordeal of travelling on the rain-damaged roads in the city continues, thanks to slow-paced efforts of the Salem Corporation in repairing potholes on roads.

The city roads to a length of about 18.6 km had suffered damage in November rain. Of which roads to a length of 5.5 km required immediate patchwork. But the Corporation had filled up the potholes with sand that proved to be of no use to the road users.

"The gaping potholes in several important thoroughfares continue to give us a nightmare," road users said.

Following repeated complaints, the Corporation had decided to set right the damaged areas and had dumped loads of gravels on the roadsides two weeks ago. But the work is yet to begin in several places.

Only the badly damaged Maravaneri Extension Road and Brett's Road in the city were restored recently. "But the civic workers have ignored patching up a few potholes on these roads," residents pointed out.

Assurance

A Corporation official said the patchworks would be taken up shortly.

The commencement of these works was delayed due to problems in mobilising machineries.

However, the 38-crore project to lay new roads and re-lay the existing damaged roads to a length of about 256 km in the city is yet to take off.

The tenders floated to award the works planned under the project had not received any bidders.

"The tenders scheduled on December 14 and 30 to award major portion of the works have not received any bids. We have planned to conduct re-tenders on January 20 and February 7 to award these works," a Corporation official said.

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