Daringibadi: The condition of the road stretch between petrol pump at Daringibadi and Parapanka in Kandhamal district has deteriorated in the past couple of years.
According to MLA Jacob Pradhan, he has already sanctioned Rs 5 lakh from his local area development (LAD) fund, for the road extension. In this connection, he had written to Baliguda ITDA project administrator Rajendra Ranajit to allocate work to a particular contractor. As there was delay in starting the road work, he again wrote to the project administrator to issue fresh work order in favour of another contractor, Ajit Kumar Sahoo.
The contractor, however, stacked sand and stone pellets on the road, much to the chagrin of the locals. Commuters including schoolchildren have been using this stony road with difficulty for the past several years.
According to sources, the villagers had brought the issue to the notice of the MLA, local and district administration. Subsequently, the MLA took up the problem seriously and granted LAD fund for the road.
“Unfortunately, the ITDA authorities have neglected the road by delaying work estimation,’’ said Pradhan.
When contacted, the ITDA project administrator said the MLA should first decide which contractor should be awarded the road contract. Apparently, a cold war between the MLA and the ITDA project administrator ensued over the issue.
Notably, 250 families residing in Parapanka village; a majority of them scheduled castes, have expressed concern over their commuting problems.
Villagers Sulochana Pradhan, Pratanjini Pradhan, Gouri Pradhan, Samuel Pradhan and Trilochan Pradhan have expressed their woes while travelling to Daringibadi for their day-to-day needs. Some schoolchildren including Mukesh Pradhan, Jatam Pradhan and Saban Mallick narrated their inconvenience on the bumpy road.
PNN