Karnataka - Hubli-Dharwad   

Shettar seeks report on status of roads

Staff Correspondent

Some officials taken to task; told to submit the report within three days

HUBLI: In the wake of complaints about poor maintenance of roads in the district, district in-charge and Revenue Minister Jagadish Shettar has asked the officials to submit a report within three days.

Chairing the review meeting of road works here on Monday, Mr. Shettar said the State Government had allocated Rs. 3 lakh for maintenance of 1 km stretch of road and a package of Rs. 11 crore had been sanctioned for the maintenance of roads in the district.

At the meeting, several elected representatives, including the Minister, expressed their ire against the officials of Public Works Department for improper planning and the delay in implementing the road works.

Pralhad Joshi, MP; S.I. Chikknagoudar and M.S. Akki, MLAs; took to task the officials who failed to give satisfactory reasons for the delay. They wanted to know why the work was not started till January when the tender process was completed in October.

The meeting was informed that out of 428 km of road in the district, the maintenance of 397 km had been given to one contractor.

S.I. Chikkanagoudar said although the officials said that 97 per cent of the road works in Kalghatgi taluk had been completed, many roads were still in bad shape even where it was said that the maintenance work had been done, he alleged.

The Public Works Department officials said that such problems were bound to arise if a single contractor was given the responsibility of maintaining roads in the district. Instead, separate contracts should be awarded for each taluk.

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