MAPUSA
While Fisheries Minister and local MLA Nilkant Halarnkar said the Assonora bypass comes under the ambit of the national highway, the Public Works Department-NH (PWD) said there was no proposal to make the bypass a part of the highway so far, although it could be developed as per the standards of the highway.
The PWD-NH has also said no proposals have been finalised on the bypass but only land acquisition has been done from Sirsaim to Mulgao.
The existing state highway (SH1) from Karraswaddo-Mapusa to Sankhali is very narrow at several places and comes under accident prone zone. Considering the bottlenecks at several stretches of the highway, a proposal to construct a bypass in Tivim constituency was envisaged several years back and land acquisition was also done.
But after acquiring the land, the entire proposal was put in cold storage primarily because of lack of funds.
A senior PWD engineer informed that years back, plans were drawn to construct a bypass from Sirsaim to Mulgao, but besides acquiring land, no proposals have been finalised.
“Estimates for the bypass stretch from Sirsaim to Mulgao were prepared long back but it was not put for approval. Nothing has been done. The proposal was done some years back because the existing state highway from Mapusa to Sankhelim is very narrow,” a PWD engineer said, requesting anonymity.
The planned bypass from Sirsaim to Mulgao is around 2.1 km in length. It will start from Sirsaim in Tivim and meet the existing road in Mulgao. There will be one bridge across Assonora River and an underpass for the Shirgao road. Besides, there will also be cattle passes since the bypass passes through some fields.
“Currently, the bypass is planned from Sirsaim to Mulgao. But if the stretch is declared as highway from Karrasvadda, Mapusa to Sankalim-Mollem then it will meet the standard of national highway. So far, no such proposal has been made. If it is declared a highway then central funds will come. As of now, the plan is to construct the bypass through the State fund,” the PWD engineer disclosed.
However, Fisheries Minister and Tivim MLA, Nilkant Halarnkar said the bypass comes under the national highway and it will be constructed through central funds.
“We have done land acquisition from Sirsaim to Mulgaon. Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, who had come to inaugurate the NH66, has promised to sanction funds for this bypass as it comes under the national highway,” Harlarnkar said.
Deputy Sarpanch of Assonora, Sapna Mapari said traffic jams have become the order of the day and stressed the need to fast-track the bypass road.
“There is an urgent need to construct the Tivim-Assonora bypass road. Day by day the number of vehicles is increasing and we are facing a lot of problems along this stretch. The CM and our minister Nilkant Halarnkar must take up the work on the bypass road on top priority,” Mapari said.
