Delhi: Crores wasted on rebuilding Pusa Road pavements in 2010
The previous MCD’s expenditure, running into crores of rupees, on the reconstruction of Pusa Road pavements – ahead of the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi – has apparently gone down the drain.
While the erstwhile MCD spent an exorbitant amount for rebuilding the pavements along the Pusa Road, the present scenario is quite deplorable — over the last four years, the pavements have either been broken at various places, or have been marred by encroachments.
Though the MCD had also laid tactile warning strips on pavements to facilitate the movement of visually-impaired people, the tiles – which were laid to match international standards – are now either broken or missing; thus making it hazardous for the visually impaired to use the special strips.
Moreover, at some places on the Pusa Road pavements, permanent as well as makeshift shops have come up. As per the residents, the authorities have taken no action to get the encroachments removed from the pavements.
To make things worse, poles for hoardings and traffic signals have also been mindlessly installed on the pavements by the government agencies, which have even planted saplings right in the middle of the pavements on either side of the road.
With crores spent on the pavements having clearly gone waste, a Rajinder Nagar resident Neeraj Gupta said: “Strict action should be taken against commercial establishments which have encroached upon the pavements. As civic agencies don’t take action, encroached pavements have become the norm.”
Source – The Times of India
2010 Commonwealth Games, Delhi, exorbitant, MCD, Pusa Road, Rajinder Nagar
