Times of India (Stanely G Pinto)

Mangalore, Oct 25: Unseasonal rains in the past two days have delayed the progress of the Rs 16.3-crore road improvement project work taken up by Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development and Finance Corporation (KUIDFC). 

Work on Phase II, pertaining to the 355-metre, four-lane concrete road between Ambedkar Circle (Jyothi Circle) and Balmatta Circle, began on September 24. 

Arun Kumar, KUIDFC Assistant Executive Engineer and Lokesh, consultant, Dalal Engineering, said that as on date, 290 metres of the stretch had been made ready with Granular Sub Base (GSB) for laying concrete. “The M 10 grade of DLC, having a thickness of 10 cm, should have been laid by now, but the unseasonal rains have delayed the work as concrete cannot be laid on the wet surface,” they said. 

Over the DLC, the final concrete layer, known as the pavement quality concrete (PQC), would be laid. The PQC would be 28 cm thick and of M 40 grade. Lokesh said the PQC work would begin four days after the laying of the DLC. 

Kumar said the work had been progressing slowly on the side where the underground drainage (UGD) line, manholes and telephone cables were laid, as it required co-ordination from various agencies. “We want the agency representatives, which have laid the cables, to be present during excavation, as they exactly know where the lines are laid. We don’t want to accidentally damage any of them,” Kumar added. 

On the other hand, there was a 250 mm cast iron pumping line towards Light House Hill Road, which was being replaced by an HDPE pipeline. The work was scheduled to begin on September 17. Deputy Commissioner Maheshwar Rao had been forced to reschedule the diversions by a week in view of the festivities. The work will take four to five months to complete, as it involves shifting of underground utilities. The bus bay areas also will be concretised, unlike in Phase I (Jyothi-Hampanakatta) where an inter-locking tiles pavement was used. 

The project, conceived by the Mangalore City Corporation using funds from KUIDFC, involves developing the 2.6-km road, from Mahaveer Circle to Hampanakatta, to make the flow of traffic smooth and hassle-free. The project is to develop 1.8 km of road from Mahaveer Circle to Jyothi Junction as a four-lane and the remaining 800 metres would be two-lane, as it’s one-way. Of the 1.8-km stretch between Mahaveer Circle and Jyothi Junction, 730 metres would be a four-lane bituminous road from Mahaveer Circle to Lower Bendorewell Junction.