Bhubaneswar: Thanks to the neglect and apathy of the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), various stretches of different highways passing through the state are in such condition that they have virtually turned out to be deathtraps for the commuters. What is worse is that in the absence of any monitoring and repair work, the condition of these roads is deteriorating further with each passing day.
A sneak peek at the National Highway-16 connecting Bhubaneswar to the coastal city of Gopalpur and Berhampur, besides covering different parts of Ganjam district and Chilika lake peripheries, revealed that several killer potholes are lurking for mishaps to take place.
Several places on the stretch of roads near the Rambha site of Chilika Lake, Khurda and other areas have such long stretches of dilapidated roads that they can potentially overturn a speedy vehicle even in broad daylight, while bikers could easily loose balance be thrown off their vehicles.
Locals and shopkeepers who reside on the periphery of the NH complained that low quality materials, mud and soil are often used for temporary repair works that are worn off in less than a week. “Several times we have seen accidents happening due to bad roads and potholes. The NHAI never bothers to repair the roads properly to ensure a smooth ride. They also do not care about loss of lives or injuries to commuters,” said Debasis Swain, a tea seller on the NH near Gopalpur.
Others also echoed the similar voices. “If we travel from Bhubaneswar to Gopalpur, we have to pay toll taxes twice – one of Rs 85 and another of the similar denomination otherwise we are not allowed to proceed on our journey. Despite paying the price of almost 3 litres of petrol while travelling on the NH and returning, we meet with deadly potholes that the NHAI never bothers to repair,” said Sonali Singh, a commuter who had been to Gopalpur from Bhubaneswar recently.
During the 2017 Monsoon Session of Parliament, Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari had confessed that incidents of road accidents are very high in Odisha. He had then said, “Road accident deaths have reduced in 25 states and Union Territories in the first half of 2017. Only states like Assam, Bihar, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh saw an increase in road accident fatalities during this period.”
As per the report of the ministry, Odisha reported 10,532 road accidents in 2016 resulting in 11,312 injuries and 4,463 citizens losing their lives in road accidents in the state during the period. As per a detailed analysis, riders of bikes and scooter and other two wheelers were the worst hit due to the bad road conditions in the state as maximum number of deaths in these accidents were reported among them. In fact, 1,582 people riding two wheelers died in road accidents in 2016. This was followed by deaths of passengers in bigger vehicles (1,115), car and medium sized vehicles (716) and pedestrians (251).
PNN