PANAJI
With the debate on road accidents back to the fore following last week’s accident on Mandovi bridge, which claimed the life of Javed Sadekar after he plunged into the river following a head-on collision with a tourist-driven rental car, the Public Works Department (PWD) has fast-tracked the tendering of the work to rectify pre-identified black spots.
Top engineers manning the division overseeing the highways said a tender worth Rs 36 crore has already
been floated.
The work order is expected to be issued in the next couple of weeks, apparently to beat the impending imposition of the code of conduct for the Lok Sabha polls.
It will take care of at least 12 ‘black spots’ identified on the Goa-Belgavi National Highway from Panaji to Anmod.
The tender specifies the 12 ‘black spots’ at various points along the Panaji-Anmod highway, which are to be repaired, including one at Borim near the Saibaba temple.
According to Executive Engineer Sumant Khanvte, the work order is expected to be issued in early March, and at least half-a-dozen of these ‘black spots’ will be fixed by May.
“There are likely to be more black spots which will be identified as the work progresses on this highway,” Khanvte said, adding that the process of identifying these sporadic road engineering deficiencies on the highway will be an ongoing task.
Black spots on State and district roads besides other internal city and village roads will also be taken up separately, according to Superintending Engineer Alan Pereira.
The current Rs 36 crore tender has been issued from the budget of Rs 150 crore sanctioned by the MORTH specifically to tackle black spots, Pereira said, adding that dangerous spots on other roads in the State are being continuously attended to by area-specific divisions of the department.
