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Portion of road caves in near Ludhiana’s busy Gulati Chowk
The Ludhiana MC rushed its ground staff to the spot after the incident, which was reported in the afternoon; heavy rush was witnessed at the Gulati Chowk market in the wake of the festive season
Despite the monsoon being long gone, road cave-ins continue to haunt commuters. In the latest incident, a portion of the road near Gulati chowk in Model Town market on Saturday caved in — giving way to a 1.5 feet wide crater.
The civic body rushed its ground staff to the spot after the incident, which was reported in the afternoon. Heavy rush was witnessed at the market in the wake of the festive season.
Giving out details, MC officials said improper laying of underground wires by a telecom company was likely behind the cave-in as there was no water or sewer line underneath.
Arvind Sharma, the shopkeeper who notified the civic body officials of the incident, slammed the authorities over poor quality of roads and questioned the lack of proper checking on underground laying of wires.
“A series of cave-ins caused by sewer or water lines getting damaged due to underground laying of wires have been reported in the past as well. The MC should keep a check as many companies install the underground lines without seeking permission from the MC,” he said.
MC superintendent engineer Ravinder Garg, meanwhile, said the damaged portion has been repaired.
Shastri Nagar crossing cave-in persists
Over a month has elapsed after a major portion of road caved in near Shastri Nagar railway crossing on September 21, but the repair work has still not been completed.
The authorities said they needed to ensure that the decades-old sewer lines were repaired properly before adding that the work will be completed in a few days.
