he increase in number of accidents on the 136 km stretch of the Salem – Ulundurpet National Highway 79 (earlier NH 68) is a cause of concern for long distance travellers as the four-lane narrows down to two-lane at eight bypasses, which the road users fail to notice. It has virtually turned into death-traps for the road users paving the way for increase in fatal accidents every year.
The four-lane project, announced in March 2005 under Phase III of National Highway Development Programme (NHDP), was executed as Built Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis by Reliance Infrastructure Limited at a cost of Rs. 941 crores and was commissioned in July, 2012. As per the agreement entered by National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the private company in July 2007, only 97.367 km of the stretch is four-lane while the rest 38.99 km in the stretch is two-lane which is the length of the eight bypass. The bypasses in Udayapatti (6.4 km), Vazhapadi (4.62 km), Narasingapuram and Attur (7.2 km), Chinna Salem (4.6 km), Kallakurichi (5.10 km), Thiagadurgam (3.90 km) , Elavanurkottai (4 km) and Ulundurpet (2.57 km) are laid as two-lane stretch.
As per an independent study conducted by a consultant in September 2014, it was revealed that about two lakh vehicles, excluding two-wheelers, pass through the toll plaza in Mettupatti every month.
However, the eight bypasses where only two-lane is available failed to catch the attention of the speeding drivers resulting in frequent accidents. Increase in traffic, absence of illumination during night hours, absence of solar blinkers at median openings and junctions, and absence of reflectors where the four-lane narrows down to two-lane is seen as the major reason for increase in accidents. The rural police said that on an average 15 persons lose their life in the stretch in the district apart from injuries to many.
S.N. Selvaraj, Salem Urban District Secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party, who took up the issue with the Central government recently told The Hindu that the eight bypasses, which are two-lane, are turning as frequent accident zones. He demanded that the bypasses be converted into four-lanes to bring down the accidents on the stretch.
About two lakh vehicles pass through the toll plaza in Mettupatti every month
