Baliguda,: Although the government is spending money on road construction, many roads remain incomplete and in poor condition.
A prime example of this can be seen in Kotagarh block of Baliguda sub-division, where two bridges between Kutiguda and Subarnagiri remain half-finished. Construction began five years ago, but neither bridge has been completed.
One of the bridges is located near the Subarnagiri Sahi square, and the other lies between Kutiguda and Subarnagiri. Though approach roads were constructed for both, they have since washed away and are now unusable. Iron rods are exposed on the sides of the bridges.
This incomplete road network affects residents from seven panchayats: Pariguda, Sartul, Pakari, Ranipanga, Palinga, and Subarnagiri, making travel extremely difficult. Due to the poor condition of the road, people frequently meet with accidents and injuries.
Despite repeated demands from locals to complete the work, no action has been taken so far, leaving residents in a state of suffering and neglect. These two bridges were originally commissioned by the Baliguda Works Department, with one having an estimated cost of ₹2 crore, and the other around ₹5 crore.
The question now being raised is: Why did the contractor abandon the work midway?
According to Prashanta Kumar Behera, the Junior Engineer of the Works Department, the project was terminated, and the process for re-tendering is underway. He assured that work will restart soon. However, there is still uncertainty regarding when the tender will be finalized and when locals will be able to use the bridges.
There is now a strong demand from locals for the district administration to take immediate action, resume the bridge construction, and complete the work quickly to provide much-needed connectivity and relief to the affected areas.
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