Andhra Pradesh - Eluru   

Work on rail bridge in the slow lane

G. Nagaraja

Laying of approach roads still in the tenders stage; delay affects business growth

AT A SNAIL'S PACE: The Powerpet railway station in Eluru where bridge is being constructed.

ELURU: The inordinate delay in completing the rail under bridge (RUB) in place of a level-crossing at Powerpet railway station seemingly takes a heavy toll on the business growth in II-Town area.

The road connecting II-Town and I-Town through Powerpet remains closed for nearly a year and half to facilitate the RUB works. The RUB was proposed during the previous Telugu Desam Party regime at a cost of Rs. 70 lakhs. The Union Ministry of Railways has volunteered to construct the RUB by spending Rs. 45 lakhs, while the Eluru Municipal Corporation (EMC) is in a bind over building approach roads on either side of the bridge. The railway ministry provided RUB in time while the EMC seemingly turned a blind eye in fulfilling its commitment. Formation of approach roads is said to be still in the stage of calling for tenders, hence the delay in opening the road for traffic.

Impact on business

The glitz and grandeur, which were usually associated with many a business house in II-Town are now conspicuously missing and the pending project reportedly results in business migration to I-Town. Mainly, footwear and textile shops, hotels, computer institutes and medical shops are bearing the burnt of the delay in completing the project. To quote Mr. Satyadev, owner of a textile shop, the textile business alone in Ramachandraraopet area in II-Town falls by 40-50 per cent in the last one and half year. The rural customers have got a habit of visiting the shops in both I-Town and II-Town in pursuit of wide range of choice. Now such customers are preferring only I-Town to II-Town", he observes. For people descending on old bus stand from villages, reaching their business destinations in II-Town means an increase in travelling distance, transport cost and loss of time as well due to closure of traffic on the proposed RUB road.

Meanwhile, the issue has assumed political colour following a protest demonstration staged by TDP former MLA Ambika Krishna near the RUB site on Friday, exposing the `thick-skinned' EMC under the Congress ruling in addressing the issues of public concern.

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Work on rail bridge in the slow lane

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