Expect smooth roads before the elections

With an eye on the polls, the Congress-led UPA government has allotted a hefty sum of Rs 33.50 crore for the renovation of 30 small roads in the district. The centre has sanctioned the fund under the 13th Finance commission for the second time. Earlier, the Union government sanctioned funds to the tune of Rs 25 crore under the finance commission in 2011. The central governments blessings did not stop here. It has also sanctioned Rs 16 crore from the Central Road Fund (CRF) for the renovation of the Shikrapur-Pabal Road and Someshwar Nagar-Neera Road. PWD officials said it was the first time the district received such a huge amount of funds through the finance commission. Thecentre allots fund to the state and the authorities later distribute it to the various districts. The state government had sent a proposal to the central government in the month of October last year and within two months it sanctioned the funds for the district. The work is now expected to start by the end of this month, said DG Malekar, superintendent engineer, PWD (Pune circle). He added that it is necessary to renovate the roads in the district after every three to five years for the smooth flow of traffic. Recognising the growing traffic on the roads across the district, it is vital to expand them for the smooth flow of traffic. For instance, the much-crowded Shikrapur–Pabal road is a single lane which will be expanded with the help of CRF at a cost of Rs seven crore, said Malekar. Ironically, the district has to depend on the funds from the central government, as the state has frequently failed to provide the funds in time. The 13-kilometre stretch of Madheghat-Kelad-Velhe for which the state approved only Rs 2 crore was insufficient even to start the renovation work, and is now be carried out with the help of the fund sanctioned under the 13th Finance Commission. The few important roads among the 30 identified ones that will be repaired are Katraj-Kondhwa Road, Pune-Warje-Mutha Road, Vadgaon-Chakan and Bhor Vai Road, said Malekar.