Road repair works gathering momentum in Kochi city

Filling of potholes on roads begins, tarring works to follow

The badly damaged city roads are turning motorable as the civic authorities have initiated the road repair works. The civic authorities are planning to accelerate the repair works as climatic conditions have turned favourable.

Initially the repair of roads, of which tendering process was completed, started in the city. It was mostly in the central city area that the works were initiated, said Soumini Jain, chairperson of the Works Standing Committee of the Kochi Corporation. The repair works in the other areas of the city will begin after the completion of the tendering process, she said.

The filling of potholes in the Valanjambalam-Ernakulam Girls High School stretch began on Tuesday. The work in the central portion of the Pandit Karuppan Road between Konthuruthy and Mattammal will be completed shortly. The re-tarring of the entire road will be held after January using the funds from the People's Plan Programme, she said.

Ms. Jain said that the repair of the Thevara bridge road was also progressing.

The patch work repairs of the Hospital road has been completed. The Public Works Department will shortly re-lay the road using Bitumen Macadam and Bitumen Concrete with a guarantee of five years. However, it may take at least two more months for the department to begin the work. The delay in beginning the work was attributed to the time required for completing the tender formalities, officials said.

Besides the road works, the civil works in various divisions that were postponed due to inclement weather have also started. In some other cases, the authorities were in the process of stocking the construction materials, Ms. Jain said.