Slow pace of Gogamukh-Dhokuakho highway construction irks people

FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT

NORTH LAKHIMPUR, June 26:  Local people here have expressed strong resentment over  the slow pace of construction work of  the Gogamukh-Dhakuakha State highway.

The 40-km State highway project, undertaken with an assistance of Rs 120.72 crore from the World Bank, was given  to Shivam Construction and JC Constructions by the State PWD. However, the slow progress of work, aggravated by inclement weather, has inconvenienced the commuters of a vast area under the Dhakuakha subdivision in  Lakhimpur district.

People from Dhakuakha, Ghilamara, Batomari, rowa Than and Gogamukh have been suffering due to the dilapidated condition of the road for a long period of time.

“Apart from the slow pace of work, the use of heavy machinery and earth filling have made it difficult for motorists to negotiate the road,” said a local student leader.

He said that incessant rainfall in the region in recent days has also created craters at various places on the under-construction highway, making things worse for the commuters and leading to minor accidents almost on a daily basis. The Tai-Ahom Students’ Union and the Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti have asked the construction companies to repair the damaged portions of the road at the earliest and to complete the construction before the monsoon sets in fully. The locals have also decided to move the Lakhimpur Deputy Commissioner demanding to expedite the construction work of the highway.