Hyderabad: Does it take a VIP visit to get the main roads repaired in the city? Residents of the colonies located between AOC Centre and Sainikpuri think so.
They point to the Rajiv Rahadari Road from Park lane crossroads to Rashtrapati Nilayam at Bolaram that is now being repaired on a war footing because President Pranab Mukherjee is scheduled to visit the city on his annual southern sojourn and stay at RP Nilayam.
The AS Rao Nagar-Sainikpuri Road is hardly a kilometre from Trimulgherry and is likely to be used for the President’s trip to RP Nilayam. This road has turned from bad to worse but is not being blacktopped.
“I am suffering from back pain due to the bad condition of the road. I request the state government to send a VIP on this route so that officials will at least take up road repairs. The roads in Banjara Hills and Jubilee Hills are re-carpeted year after year because VIPs stay there. Our road from Military Hospital to AS Rao Nagar via Ramakrishnapuram Bridge is neglected as common people stay here,” said Vijay Dabade, a resident of Balaji Colony.
Katkoori Srinivas Rao, a senior citizen, said people of his age should avoid commuting on this road. “The entire body is shaken up and leaves you with pains. This road is in bad shape for six months now. What is the action or penalty that the government will levy on the officials? I have taken pain killers to get rid of the pains after my back- breaking travel,” he said.
According to R.C. Purohit and S.L. Padhi, residents of old Safilguda, all the roads were narrow and dust, potholes and ditches posed threats to the lives of motorists. “The bitumen has peeled off at several stretches and dust suffocates the motorists, specially two-wheeler riders,” they said.
The bad road conditions have also affected the businesses of many traders. Mohd Akram of Dhoom Dhamaka Garments said, “We are losing customers as a thick layer of dust is engulfing the garments inside the shop. No customer wants to shop in this dust. Even our salesboys and salesgirls have quit owing to the dust,” he said.
Swaroop Reddy and his sister Sougnya, residents of AS Rao Nagar, said two accidents had occurred and a person had died due to bad condition of the roads recently.
“Because of the absence of bitumen, vehicles, particularly two-wheelers, skid. Heavily loaded lorries are also being allowed to ply on this road where there is a lot of residential and office-going traffic,” they said.
While the road from Military Hospital at AOC Centre to the main road connecting AS Rao Nagar is under the control of the Army, the corridor from Trimulgherry to AS Rao Nagar up to Moulali via RK Puram Bridge is ma-intained by the Roads and Buildings department.
Secunderabad Cantonm-ent Board CEO Sujatha Gupta, said that recently the Army authorities had written to the SCB to repair the road. “The SCB is willing to take up repairs only if the Army says that it cannot,” she said.
