High Court Rebukes Officials Over Poor Road Conditions

The High Court, displeased with the state's deteriorating roads, has urged government officials to expedite improvements. Reprimanding officials, the court stated that road construction wastes significant time on technical inspections, tenders, and work orders. This is not correct. It should be noted that the High Court has taken suo motu cognizance of the state's poor roads. The case is being heard by a division bench headed by Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha. The government submitted its response to the court, stating that work on the Ratanpur-Sendri road is nearly complete, and the Raipur road is 70% complete, expected to be completed within the next 15 days. The NHAI also stated that the roads will be completed soon.
The High Court held a hearing regarding the poor condition of the Bilaspur-Raipur National Highway (NH 90). During the hearing, the court asked when the Bilaspur-Raipur National Highway would be repaired. The court, in a stern remark, stated that the lack of concrete steps to improve the situation and the NHAI's silence are worrying. The High Court stated that repeated affidavits are not achieving their objectives. NHAI cannot shirk responsibility by simply submitting reports on paper. The government stated that the road from Pendridih to Nehru Chowk belongs to the State Public Works Department (PWD) and will be inspected and reconstructed. Regarding the poor condition of the Ratanpur Kenda Road, the High Court requested an affidavit from the PWD Secretary. Similarly, the court expressed displeasure over the ash from power plants spilling onto the main road between Raipur and Bilaspur and sought a response from the Chief Secretary.

During the hearing, the National Highways Authority stated that foot overbridges are being constructed for pedestrian safety in Turkadih, Sendri, Ranigaon, Malnadih, and Beltara. The initial estimated cost was 17.95 crore rupees, which has now been reduced to 11.38 crore rupees. A joint inspection of the construction site has been conducted. The tender has been issued. Construction work will commence upon approval. During the hearing, the court noted that the construction of the road from Pendridih Bypass to Nehru Chowk in Bilaspur was approved in April, but no progress has been made to date. Similarly, work on Raipur's Dhaneli Airport Road is also incomplete.