CM Chandababu Naidu Calls for Completion of Road Repair Works by Sankranti

 Vijayawada: Chief Minister Nara Chandababu Naidu has called for completion of the road repair works in the state by or before the Sankranti festival. Quality must be ensured, he stressed.

Naidu reviewed the progress of repair works at the Secretariat here on Monday, to make the roads free of potholes. These works were undertaken by the government from November 2 with the allotment of a special fund of Rs 861 crore.

The chief minister asked the officials to place contractors in the blacklist if they failed to ensure quality in the repair works.

Officials informed the CM that out of a road network of 45,378km that belonged to the Roads and Bridges segment, repair works were ordered for a stretch of 22,299km. Of these, so far, some 1,991km of roads were repaired by filling up the potholes.

Officials informed the CM that repair works “are not possible” over a 1,447km stretch of roads and new roads have to be laid at an estimated cost of Rs 581 crore.

The chief minister promised to release the necessary funds.

The officials also proposed the CM to facilitate jungle clearance on a stretch of 23,521km at a cost of Rs 33 crore.

They presented estimates for laying 10,220 km of state highways out of a total stretch of 12,653 km through PPP mode; and in the first phase, 18 roads of a stretch of 1,30km.