Rs 348 crore sanctioned for treatment of slopes on Pithoragarh-Tanakpur highway
Rs 348 crore sanctioned for treatment of slopes on Pithoragarh-Tanakpur highway
B.D.Kasniyal
Pithoragarh, Aug 21
A sum of Rs 348 crore has been sanctioned for the treatment of 32 vulnerable slopes along the Tanakpur-Pithoragarh all-weather road, Union Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways Ajay Tamta said here on Thursday.
Addressing a press conference after chairing a district-level review meeting with senior officials, Tamta said that once all the identified vulnerable slopes were treated, the 150-km highway would become safer and facilitate smoother travel, particularly during the monsoon.
“The Modi government is committed to making road travel in the hill regions safer, smoother and more convenient,” Tamta said.
He added that, apart from the slope-treatment project, work worth Rs 85 crore was already under way to strengthen and hot-mix the all-weather road.
Of the 32 vulnerable slopes identified for treatment, the Swala and Delhi Bend stretches have been identified as among the most dangerous. Tamta said a separate project had already been sanctioned for the treatment of the highly vulnerable Swala slope, while Delhi Bend and the other identified stretches would be taken up separately to improve the safety of the highway, particularly during the monsoon.
At present, traffic is restricted during night hours on vulnerable stretches of the highway during the monsoon to prevent accidents and other mishaps. “Once the slope-treatment work is completed and the vulnerable stretches are made safe, traffic can also be allowed during night hours,” the minister said.
The Tanakpur-Pithoragarh all-weather road is the main road link connecting the border districts of Pithoragarh and Champawat with Tanakpur. Besides local residents, the highway is extensively used by people from the far-western region of Nepal and personnel of the Indian security forces deployed along the India-China and India-Nepal borders.
Tamta said that 298 other roads in the border district had also been identified as vulnerable to disruption during the monsoon. “A total of 145 JCB machines and four Bailey bridges have been kept on standby for use in emergencies on these roads,” he said.
