PANAJI:
The story of Ponda's road underpass near the KTC bus-stand has turned out to be a case of so near, yet so far: almost ready for over two months but not yet commissioned for use.
The RCC structure was ready in March-April but PWD officials said it cannot be commissioned because the gas pipelines which pass through it have to be first shifted.
"We had officially written to the Goa Natural Gas Private Limited to shift their pipelines which supply gas to households for cooking," the official of PWD's national highways division said.
He added that the contractor cannot be permitted to dig the road surface in the underpass unless these gas pipelines are shifted.
The GNGPL meanwhile is in a quandary to shift the pipelines and are suggesting instead that they (pipeline) be held suspended with support at regular intervals in the duration that the underpass work is executed.
This underpass is crucial for two reasons: one, it provides a safer and more convenient route for motorists to get to the KTC bus stand, particularly for residents of Chirputem and Shahpur and two it is key to the widening of the Shapur-Bhoma stretch of the national highway.
According to PWD officials, the work of widening the highway stretch between Shahpur and Bhoma can be taken up only after the underpass is ready.
Meanwhile, the contractor has proceeded to construct the retaining walls alongside the underpass site and this work is also nearing completion.
Funds worth over Rs 100 crore for the underpass were sanctioned by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways in February 2024 after which the PWD floated the tender in March for the work worth Rs 97 crore which also included the approach road of recently built Khandepar bridge and some other works.
The underpass was to be completed and commissioned in one year and Power Minister Ramkrishna (Sudin) Dhavlikar had publicly announced in December last year that it will be thrown open to vehicular traffic in April.
