With Kumbh early next year, little time is left to clear mess
Elaborate arrangements are being made by the state government to make ‘Kumbh-2019’ in Allahabad a memorable event. A large scale development work is going on in Allahabad for widening roads, constructing heavy drains and road over bridges all over the city.
It has led to dismantling of front portions of huge number of buildings. Once the work is over, Allahabad will become a smart city for sure.
However, the condition of Allahabad city as of now is piti- able with demolished houses along long stretches, dug up roads and drains with muck filled up heavily on stretch of every road being widened.
This muck and debris are already affecting traffic movement. It will become swampy with first monsoon shower as normal flow of rainwater will be obstructed causing much inconvenience to people.
A realistic time schedule will indicate that restoration of road surface and completing ‘nullahs’ for proper drainage and completion of road over bridges is a massive work and may not be possible before Kumbh.
The available time includes three months of monsoon. It will be a stupendous task to complete the work by December 2018—one month before the start of Kumbh—unless the administration realises the grave urgency.
Kumbh attracts devotees in large numbers from all over the country, particularly from neighbouring areas where people normally come by road. Some 200 km long Allahabad– Lucknow highway, under remodelling for over three years now, cuts a very sorry figure particularly in the 120 kilometre stretch between Allahabad and Rae Bareli.
Besides, long jams at Teliarganj before Ganga bridge at Phaphamau, condition at two railway crossings near Kunda also cause huge traffic jams.
The inordinate delay in the construction of road over bridge at Unchahar railway crossing is a nightmare.
The third major hurdle is across Civil Lines, Rae Bareli, extending to dilapidated bridge over Sai river reaching up to narrow road at Munshiganj Bazaar.
THE CONDITION OF ALLAHABAD CITY IS PITIABLE WITH DEMOLISHED HOUSES ALONG LONG STRETCHES, DUG UP ROADS AND DRAINS WITH MUCK FILLED UP ON EVERY ROAD
It is sheer neglect that these hurdles have not been removed in the last three years.
It may be noted that NHAI takes credit for ‘constructing’ over 25 kilometres of roads every day and in UP a serious difficulty on its main highway between Lucknow and Allahabad has been persisting for over two years now.
Another matter of extreme concern is an ill planned connection of another highway (Kanpur- Sultanpur) being connected to NH-24 on the narrow stretch of the highway very near the dilapidated bridge over River Sai across Civil Lines in Rae Bareli.
Long vehicles moving across Allahabad-Lucknow highway are already causing jam on that part of the road and such vehicles landing from the other national highway in the small turning circle provided at the junction are certain to bring traffic movement to a grinding halt.
This problem has to be resolved immediately before devotees start using Allahabad-Lucknow national highway for Kumbh.