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Congress government to probe BJP tenure roads washed away in floods

BHOPAL: Kamal Nath government will start an investigation on recently constructed roads of the erstwhile BJP government that could not withstand the monsoon showers. Launching a scathing attack on the BJP, minister for PWD Sajjan Singh Verma said on Friday, “There are those who are raising questions on the condition of roads after the rains.

Do they need to be reminded that these roads were constructed during their regime?”


Speaking to reporters, Sajjan Singh Verma claimed that the former BJP government spent massive amount of funds for construction of roads and all have been washed away in the rains. “So much money spent and erosion of the roads happened so fast. The present government will probe into some of these roads that have been washed away,” he said.
The minister explained that roads that were constructed very recently during the former government’s regime have been “uprooted”. “These roads have been identified, the ones that have been washed away even before the set annuity period. An investigation will be conducted and the guilty punished,” he said.

Verma also alleged that the Centre was not renovating national highways and not allocating funds to the state government either for roads construction. “If there are pot-holed roads, everyone thinks the PWD department is to be blamed. But there are many national highways that crisscross the state which are in bad condition. After repeated meetings with Union minister for road transport and highways, the Centre has not renovated its highways. The Mandla-Barela highway, the Sidhi-Singrauli highway are in pathetic condition,” he said.
State government has asked Union minister Gadkari to terminate the agreement of the present contractor and issue a new appointment for the national highways. “We even said that give state the funds for renovation of these national highways and we will get the work done,” Sajjan Singh Verma claimed.

“But there is an ongoing disagreement between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Nitin Gadkari over the Central Road Fund (CRF) which the Prime Minister wants to make CRIF Central Roads and Infrastructure Fund to include railways. CRF for Madhya Pradesh amounting to Rs 1181 has not been released despite our continuous reminders,” he said.

Verma argued that even without funds from the Centre, state government is constructing the worst affected roads of Neemuch and Mandsaur at war footing. Government has also approved two elevated bridges for each major city of Indore , Bhopal , Jabalpur, Gwalior and Chhindwara. Verma said that 550 rural roads have been approved by the government for construction and legislators have been asked to give more suggestions for infrastructure in their constituencies.

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