Anandapur: At a time when the government is claiming of transparency in implementation of developmental works across the state, the poor standard of Anandapur VIP Road in Keonjhar district portrays a contradictory picture.
The VIP Road was built as part of the city’s beautification. But the condition of the road is so bad that it develops cracks even with a little rain.
The Anandapur VIP Road connects Khapakhai Chhak with Ghasipura Bye-pass Chhak. It was laid at an estimated cost of Rs 6, 19, 48, 538. As per the official records, the road was completed February 2, 2017. But the construction of the road is not completed yet, really, says locals.
Roads and Buildings Department of Ghatagaon Division had taken up the responsibility of construction of the road and given the tender to a reputed contractor Prafulla Kumar Mohapatra.
However, the road had developed cracks before the completion of the work. The contractor had tried to patch them up but the result was poor as the road has been developing fissures at several places.
The residents of Anandapur area, while talking to the media persons, alleged the road had been built with low quality materials by employing a corrupt contractor.
The locals alleged, “due to the profiteering nature of the contractor, the road has developed cracks, faults and blocks are falling off the road due to lack of compaction.”
Sources said the tarmac road was damaged from both sides due to the cyclonic storm Fani. To cover up this, the contractor has put layers of soil on either sides of the road, they said adding, the department has tried to cover up the corrupt practices of the contractor.
When the Road and Building Department’s officer SK Adhikari was asked about the matter, he said the contractor used new soil to relay the road. He clarified the cracks developed on the road is due to compaction problem. He assured to sort out the issue.
As per guidelines of the department, the contractor should take care of road maintenance for five years. But in this case the road has developed cracks before the work was completed. The residents alleged the construction work was being done just by covering the road with soil.
‘The road metalling process has not been done. There may be clandestine deals between the officers and the contractor,” locals alleged and demanded a probe into the project.