Kerala - Kochi   

Roads in bad shape even after court deadline

KOCHI: Many roads in the State remain in a bad shape even after Friday, August 31, the deadline set by the High Court to complete repairs on them.

Passing an order in a public interest petition, the court had expressed serious doubts about the quality of roads in the State, citing how rainwater remained on the road without flowing into the drains.

The condition of roads deteriorating during the monsoon is nothing new in the State. But never in recent memory have they been in such a bad shape. Officials of the Public Works Department (PWD) and local bodies blame the rains and inadequate funds. But it is alleged that a good share of the funds ends up in the hands of unscrupulous officials and politicians.

Apart from the irreparable loss to life and property caused by road accidents, potholed roads have been causing unnecessary wear and tear of vehicles. Fuel and time are wasted when vehicles wind their way through bad roads.

Experts have been demanding that the PWD, Corporations and local bodies have a permanent preventive maintenance wing to repair damage in quick time. They suggest laying of durable roads that can outlive the rains and heavy traffic.

The fate of Main Central (M.C.) Road is well known. Not that the National Highways 47 and 17 are safe. Gaping holes dot the highway at Palakkad, Thrissur, Ernakulam (the Vytilla-Aroor stretch is the worst), Haripad, Kayamkulam and Kollam, where there is heavy traffic all through the day. Less said the better about roads in the Malabar region and in cities. Danger lurks at most road junctions in Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode, in the form of huge potholes. Vehicles with flat tyres and broken axles are a common sight on most roads.

Many road- and bridge-development projects have been abandoned half way, examples being the work on M.C. Road and others under the Kerala State Transport Project. The work on a flyover at Bakery Junction (hardly a kilometre from the Secretariat) in Thiruvananthapuram is in limbo.

A PWD engineer said that roads can outlive the rains only if they are topped with at least 40-mm chipping carpet every few years. “In addition, drain-to-drain contract has to be awarded (like in Tamil Nadu) so that the contractor will ensure that the road has sufficient slant for water to seep into the drains. In Kerala, the contractor is asked to just re-lay the road.”

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