Silvester D’ Souza

Daijiworld Media Network – Kundapur (EP)

Kundapur, Feb 3: Deputy commissioner Priyanka Mary Francis on Saturday, February 2 lashed out against Navyug Company which has dug Beejadi service road during last few days, put gravel on it and left the work incomplete.

The deputy commissioner upon receiving complaints from locals called Navyug Company team, walked with them from Beejadi service road U-turn to Beejadi Y-junction curve, inspected the work and took the engineers to task. “How will students, elderly persons and locals walk on the road the whole day long? There are no borders on either sides of the road. There is no question of giving you more time when there are risks here. If you do not resume work on Monday, your company will be blacklisted, legal action will be taken against you and emergency measures will be taken up,” she said. Tahsildar Tippeswamy and team of Navyug Company officials were present.

“More than 80 accidents have occurred here from 2015 to 2019. Five people have lost their lives. Residents and shop keepers have become sick because of dust here. No highway work in Kundapur is completed. Street lights do not work. There are no safety borders on either sides of the highway. But payment of toll is made compulsory,” explained local journalist Aishwarya Beejadi to the deputy commissioner.

Locals took Navyug Company engineers and National Highway Authority officer Samson to task. “Besides delaying works for so many years, you have dug the road making us difficult to walk about. We are scared when we walk on this stretch looking at the vehicles plying on upper part of highway. Who is responsible if those vehicles topple?” they asked.

Zilla panchayat member Srilatha Suresh Shetty, taluk panchayat member Violet Baretto, Beejadi gram panchayat member Vadiraj Hebbar, PDO Ganesh, Gopadi gram panchayat president Saraswathi Putran, Beejadi service road campaign committee leader Raju Bettinamane, Chandrashekar Beejadi, Annappa Bettinamane, Narayan Bhandary, Anantakrishna Upadhyaya, Beejadi Mitra Sangama Association president B G Nagaraja Beejadi, office bearers Anup Kumar B R, Nagaraj Kalavida, Rajesh Achar Gopady, Girish Beejadi, Rajesh Achar Beejadi, Vakwadi Yuvashakthi Mitra Mandala leader Santhosh Kulal Vakwadi, Beejadi Badagadi Nagabobbarya temple president Sridhar Chatrabettu, Moodubopadi Rifai Juma Masjid chief secretary B M Nasir, Beejadi Riksha driver’s association head Dinesh Halthur,
entrepreneurs Suresh Bettin, Jayakar Shetty, Mahesh Matti, Karunaker Shetty Kedoor, Mahesh Bhandary, Subhash Chand and others were present.