Safety a far cry on GNB Road

The highways and byways

By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, July 19:  While Dispur is going gaga over smart city, digital India and wifi connectivity city roads continue to give residents a harrowing time. Residents are clueless in thinking about a smart city with roads ormented with potholes and craters along with other problems.

The road that is in limelight is one of the busiest roads in the city. It is the GNB Road that connects Chandmari to Ambari via Silpukhuri. The entire stretch is dappled with craters of diverse sizes. The road is in the worst condition at the traffic point. One faces a harrowing time while going up the Chandmari flyover towards the office of All India Radio. This particular stretch of the road turned into a very large crater. The rainy season adds woes to it when vehicles take more time than necessary while making their way through the water, causing serious traffic congestion.

The GNB Road is one of the low-lying roads of the city. With water logging a serious problem for this road the craters on it act as deathtraps. People who are regular commuters of this road are of the view that if the PWD cannot mend the road they should at least display warning signboards beside the craters during rainy days.

The road is also afflicted by awkward designs in the form of lids on manholes. These lids being placed haphazardly have been rising 2- 3 inches from the surface. Vehicles, two wheelers and four wheelers slow their pace in order to avoid obstruction causing delay in smooth flow of traffic.

PWD again blamed in on the shortage of construction materials. Seeing the pathetic condition the potholes were filled with stones and bricks. But the condition of the road deteriorates when heavy shower wash the filler materials way.