the goan I network
PANAJI
The High Court has directed the State government to file an affidavit on the steps taken to repair the pothole ridden roads in the State, after a PIL was filed in this regard by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) General Secretary Pradeep Padgaonkar.
The Court drew the attention of the Advocate General (AG) Devidas Pangam to an earlier order by the same Court in Bombay wherein detailed guidelines were laid to draw a mechanism for the people to lodge complaints against bad roads and potholes. The matter will now be heard on October 14.
Padgaonkar had, in August, sought the intervention of the High Court of Bombay at Goa in the matter of the ‘extremely bad and dangerous road conditions’ in the State. The petition was converted into a PIL last week.
In his complaint, Padgaonkar said that the negligence of the government when it came to maintaining roads in the State posed a threat to the health and lives of the people of the State, as well as tourists. He demanded that a commissioner be appointed to ascertain the extent of damage to the roads.
Padgaonkar further stated that a commissioner would help people to report the enormity of the problem, as other agencies in the State have not helped improve the state of the roads.
“Most of the road network in Goa is riddled with potholes of varying sizes posing serious risk to the commuting public more particularly two-wheeler riders and pedestrians,” Padgaonkar had stated.
Padgaonkar specified that on the Mapusa to Margao stretch at Guirim and the Zuari bridge, there are often massive traffic snarls due to minor and major mishaps on the roads. He added that a majority of minor injuries caused to people went unreported.
The Bastora-Guirim road overbridge posed a huge danger at the intersecting point under the bridge, and many accidents occur there, he said.
The applicant has also prayed for contractors to be monitored so that they maintain proper safety standards.
The bad state of Goa’s roads has been haunting the government, with Goans, unable to stand it any longer, ridiculing and mocking the roads on social media. Dancer Cecille Rodrigues’s ongoing Rosto Campaign on social media has been gaining momentum as well. Rodrigues has asked Goans to flood social media with pictures of potholes on October 2, to highlight the plight of Goans. Incidentally, Rodrigues too had contested on the AAP ticket in Taleigao in 2017.
PWD Minister Deepak Pauskar has meanwhile been trying to desperately wriggle out of the tough situation he is put himself in, blaming the rains for being unable to mend the roads. He has now asked for “eight more days” to repair the potholes. He had earlier promised to do so by Ganesh Chathurthi, long past.
