A plea was made to the Centre to draw its urgent attention to the inordinate delay in the completion of the Mannuthy-Wadakkanchery stretch of the National Highway 544 (Old NH 47), Kerala’s first six-lane highway, and the twin tunnel roads in Kuthiran.
This stretch of the highway is a strategic route of transportation between Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
T.N. Prathapan, MP, has written to Nithin Gadkari, Minister for Road Transport and Highways, urging a high-level investigation against KMC, the consigned company, and officials of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), who are allegedly responsible for the delay in the completion of the work. The letter has been signed by all MPs in the State.\
Claimed 58 lives
“The NHAI and the KMC are delaying the work on 25.5 km of road with four underpasses and a twin tunnel. The sluggish pace of work and pathetic condition of the road have already claimed 58 precious lives,” Mr. Pathapan said.
As per the original plan, the work required just 30 months. But it is still pending even after 8 years. The construction has been carried out unscientifically and without adhering to any safety standards prescribed by the Indian Road Congress, the MP said.
“The company has violated the contract provisions for strengthening the walls of Kuthiran tunnels. Leakage has been reported in the tunnel and lack of expertise in construction is evident. The NHAI has neither given strict instruction to the company nor allowed the State PWD to do the overlay work,” the petition alleged.