Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (SP)

Mangaluru, Dec 7: As per the current indications, work on repair and development of Shiradi Ghat stretch of national highway 75 might begin in January 2017, after repeated postponements and derailed plans.

Chief whip of the state legislative council, Ivan D'Souza, raised this topic at the Karnataka Development Project meeting held on Tuesday December 6 at the zilla panchayat hall here that was chaired by Dakshina Kannada district in-charge minister, B Ramanath Rai. He pointed out that the issue of Shiradi ghat road has cropped up time and again since the last many years mostly for wrong reasons, and the contractors have not begun work on it although 13 months of 18 permitted for the purpose have elapsed. He recalled that minister Rai had more than once suggested for the works on this road to be take up, duly providing for the movement of at least light vehicles during this period.

Official of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) informed that out of 21 km road proposed to be developed and repaired in the second phase, asphalting of six km stretch had been taken up near Sakleshpur now and that paver machines have to arrive before concreting work can be taken up. He said that 44 percent of raw materials have been stocked and repair of 35 out of 52 culverts proposed to be repaired has been undertaken. He exuded confidence that the work might begin in January and end by April 2017. The officials of the department have opposed the proposal to allow movement of vehicles during repair works as they might damage freshly laid concrete slabs due to tremors and that enough space is required for various machineries to move about during the period.

Rai expressed his reservations about the issue of water gets stranded on national highway at several places. Because of the fact that service road has not been provided near the tollgate at Brahmarakootlu and the four-lane highway merges into a narrow road ahead, he insisted that this tollgate should be moved to another spot and wanted a decision to be passed relating to this issue. Official of NHAI said that the tollgates at NITK and Brahmarakootlu are temporary ones, and that they will merge with permanent tollgates once they come up.

MLA, Abhay Chandra Jain, wanted to know about the widening of road between the city and Karkala via Moodbidri. The deputy commissioner said that there was demand for narrowing down this road to 45 or 35 meters and that bypass alignments were found to be defective. He said that a committee is looking into this issue. Jain wanted bridges on this road also to be strengthened.

MLA, Mohiuddin Bava, DC KG Jagadeesh, zilla panchnayat chief executive officer, Dr M R Ravi, zilla panchnayat president, Meenakshi Shantigodu, vice president, Kasturi Panja, standing committee chairperson, Asha Timmappa Gowda, superintendent of police, Bhushan Gulabrao Borase, and others were present.