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Ludhiana: Crores spent but newly built roads only last weeks
Commuters at receiving end as 3 recently recarpeted roads have started peeling off; cabinet minister Sanjeev Arora said, “I have marked an inquiry into this matter and directed MC commissioner Neeru Katyal to look into the matter”.
Even as the Municipal Corporation (MC) claims to be improving the city’s road network by spending crores on re-carpeting works, three recently rebuilt roads in Ludhiana have started peeling off within weeks, exposing serious lapses in execution, supervision and quality control of civic projects.
However, cabinet minister Sanjeev Arora said, “I have marked an inquiry into this matter and directed MC commissioner Neeru Katyal to look into the matter”.
The first case has been reported outside Gurdwara Dukhniwaran Sahib, where a road rebuilt barely one-and-a-half months ago has once again begun to deteriorate. The surface has started peeling off, gravel is scattered on the carriageway and potholes are clearly visible. The stretch connects Field Ganj with the gurdwara and remains one of the busiest pockets of the old city.
The road had earlier been reconstructed ahead of the Nagar Kirtan organised in November to commemorate the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur. At that time, senior deputy mayor and Ward 90 councillor Rakesh Parashar had ordered the road to be rebuilt after pointing out substandard work, asserting that public money would not be allowed to go waste. Ironically, the same stretch is now crumbling again.
The second instance has surfaced in J-Block, Sarabha Nagar, where a road built around one-and-a-half months ago has also started peeling off. Congress leader Nitin Thapar shared a video of the damaged stretch, stating that the road has been constructed three times in the past, yet it continues to fail within days of completion. He alleged that despite repeated complaints, neither the contractor nor the responsible officials have faced any action.
A third damaged road has been reported outside Gurdwara Kalgidhar Sahib in Field Ganj, where residents say the freshly recarpeted surface has begun to wear out. Gurmeet Singh, a local shopkeeper, said loose gravel and uneven patches had made the road unsafe for pedestrians and two-wheeler riders.
The situation has sparked anger among residents, who question how newly built roads are getting damaged. They argue that these roads have been laid using taxpayers’ money and their premature failure points towards poor-quality material, faulty execution or negligence.
Criticism has intensified as the MC has recently floated road re-carpeting tenders worth over ₹80 crore. Residents and opposition leaders have demanded that accountability be fixed for roads that have already failed before awarding fresh works. They have also sought that road sample and quality test reports be made public, payments to defaulting contractors be stopped and erring firms blacklisted.
Responding to the issue, SDO Akshay Bansal said, “Notices have been issued to the contractor. The road was recarpeted during early winter due to the martyrdom anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur. The contractor will repair and re-carpet the damaged stretch in March.”
