Probe sought into quality of roads

TIMES NEWS NETWORK , Panchkula: Alleging use of sub-standard material and financial anomalies in maintenance and recarpeting of roads by MC, Hemant Kinger, an office bearer of a residents’ body has sought an in-depth probe into the matter.
He has put forth a demand for testing of the material used in roads in laboratories, Punjab Engineering College (PEC) or Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Roorkee to ascertain the quality.
‘‘We just want to know the circumstances resulting in an unprecedented increase in allocation of funds to Rs 12 crore for maintenance of roads against Rs 5 crore spent in the past three years for the purpose. This has to be probed by the administration.
Since 70 per cent of the city roads reportedly maintained by the council are in a pathetic condition, samples of the material used need to be examined at PEC or IIT laboratories where work carried out by Huda’s contractors should be put to test,’’ Hemant Kinger, president of Punjabi Mahasabha, an NGO, said.
Claiming to have collected all the information from the Council under Right To Information (RTI) Act, Kinger said he had personally verified and cross- checked the information concerning roads given by council before demanding the probe.
Besides this, he sought to bring to the court’s cognisance two incidents wherein the council made a payment of an amount of over one and a half lakh rupees for maintenance of roads in Swastik Vihar. Since the concerned colony is yet to be handed over to council or Huda by the coloniser, the work itself puts a question mark on council’s role, Kinger said while addressing mediapersons here.
Publication: Times Of India Chandigarh; Date:2007 Feb 16; Section:Times Chandigarh; Page Number 20