CM's October 15 deadline for pothole-free roads ends tomorrow, many Rudrapur roads still in bad shape; Bagwara residents fill potholes with rubble themselves

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami had ordered all districts to make roads pothole-free by October 15, that is before Dussehra, but Amar Ujala's check on Tuesday still found big potholes on several main roads in Rudrapur. The Galla Mandi road is broken in places for about 100 metres; trucks, tractor-trolleys and farmers coming to sell paddy use it every day. There are also potholes near Janta Inter College, on the inner roads of Doctor Colony, in Jainagar ward, near the railway crossing and on Bagwara road; in many places the holes have merely been filled with soil and stones for show. In Bagwara, residents brought rubble from old houses and filled the potholes themselves. PWD executive engineer Gajendra Singh said patchwork is under way and the department's roads will be repaired on time; Municipal Commissioner Shipra Joshi said tenders have been issued for some roads and patchwork on damaged roads will be done in a day or two. Meanwhile, at a meeting with DMs and SSPs late on Tuesday night, the Chief Minister said he will soon tour the state by road himself and, if he finds a broken road, the officer concerned will be held accountable. (Source: Amar Ujala, Mahanaad)