The Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) has warned that it will resort to taking out a funeral procession and burning the district administrations and elected representatives of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts in effigies, if they fail to make tolled highways in the two districts motorable.
With craters and potholes emerging all along the national highways passing through the districts, the roads have become death traps for motorists resulting in many road accidents.
While the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) says repair works can be taken up only after monsoon subsides, the administration agrees with such irresponsible statement, said DYFI State president Muneer Katipalla in a press release.
NHAI and highway concessionaires that should have taken up emergency repair works to make highways motorable and prevent loss of precious human life have abdicated their duty and are only concerned about collecting toll, Mr. Katipalla regretted.
It was mandatory that tolled roads should always be in motorable condition and at no point of time, they should become dangerous to drive, he added.
More than ₹1 crore toll is being collected in each one of the toll plazas in the two districts. The concessionaires are mandated to maintaining the highways in good condition, including providing street lights, clearing weeds, providing proper drainage facilities thereby avoiding water-logging on highways and the like. However, flaws that creep in during road construction, including poor quality of construction, are getting exposed when it rains.
Despite the district administrations and elected representatives having lawful rights to compel NHAI and the agencies concerned to ensure that the highways are kept in good condition, they have become silent. If they continue to remain silent, the highways will further deteriorate thereby making driving a miserable experience, Mr. Katipalla said.
The least they could do to compel the agencies concerned to repair the highways is to order suspension of toll collection till the road condition improves, he said.
