Picket road, a lifeline, to stay closed till May
The prime connectivity to Kharkhana — Jubilee Bus station, the Picket Road that witnesses over 1 lakh commuters a day, has been closed since a week and will remain so till May 2017. A large chuck of the road, in front of the existing Picket nala, has been cut open to build a new culvert. The Secunderabad Cantonment board authorities demolished the earlier British-era culvert as it was in a dilapidated condition
Traffic on Picket Road has been diverted to the internal lanes of Vikrampuri which connect to Kharkhana for those coming from Wellington RoadMarredpally. Vehicles take the Gandhian High School lane and pass through colonies, to reach Kharkhana. However, those heading from JBS, Secunderabad Club who don't know the shortcuts, can either take the PatnyWest Marredpally road or Trimulgherry CrossroadsGough Road.
Residents of Laxmi Nagar and Vasavi Nagar colonies are travelling roundabout to get to Secunderabad, as the dug up road divides the Picket area
Anil Kumar, who lives in Laxmi Nagar said, "I have to take the reverse route, travel through Vasavi Colony lanes, which further connects to the Kharkhana police station to reach Secunderabad. The first day the road was closed many were perplexed and tried finding new ways."
Suresh Reddy, whose child studies at Gandhian High School, Picket, said, "Traffic has increased tremendously in front of the school as this lane has become the prime route for commuters from Wellington Road. School buses find it difficult to take the narrow colony routes. Not many know of the connecting lanes."
On a visit to the site, it was found that the contractor, Laxmin and Sons, and the workers, have been absent from the site since two days. If the pace of work does not speed up, the deadline is likely to be missed.
Phani Kumar, assistant engineer of the SCB said: "The British-era culvert's inlets and outlets were not taking the increasing sewer load, and it could collapse any day. This nala connects to Hussainsagar. The culvert was made of stone and the passage is too small for the current heavy load. It is important to replace it with a reinforced cement-concrete culvert and widen the vents. The SCB has sanctioned 1.10 crore for the RCC culvert. The contractors have been told to complete the work by May.