Repair of CISF Road in Ghaziabad: UPPCB may act against contractor

Officials of UPPCB said that the dug-up road, which is used by thousands of commuters from Sahibabad, Vasundhara, and Indirapuram, among other areas, is impacting the air quality of the area

The Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) may initiate legal action against the contractor hired by the UP Jal Nigam for allegedly delaying the repair work of CISF Road in Indirapuram. Officials of UPPCB said that the dug-up road is impacting the air quality of the area.

Restoration work of CISF Road in Ghaziabad has been pending since the completion of the pipeline project in January. (Sakib Ali/HT)

The CISF Road, which is used by thousands of commuters from Sahibabad, Vasundhara, and Indirapuram, among other areas, was dug up last year by the Jal Nigam for laying of pipeline to augment the discharge of treated water from the sewage treatment plants at Indirapuram.

Though the work for the pipeline project ended in January this year, the road is yet to be repaired, the officials said, adding that the Vasundhara to NH-9 side of the road is causing massive air pollution due to numerous potholes and dust.

“In May, we sent a letter to the Jal Nigam after which they intimated their vendor to expedite the repair work. But as of today, the road revamp work has not taken place. So, we have written to our headquarters for permission to prosecute Jal Nigam’s contractor. Once this is obtained, we will move the court under the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act,” said Utsav Sharma, regional officer of UPPCB, Ghaziabad.

Ghaziabad has four air quality monitoring stations at Indirapuram, Vasundhara, Sanjay Nagar and Loni. Recently, the state government directed that all roads should be made pothole-free by October 30, citing a rise in pollution levels during the winter season.

When asked, officials of the Jal Nigam said that the road repair and restoration work will be expedited.

“The repair work for the road will start from tomorrow while the restoration works will begin from Monday next week. The work got delayed as the hot mix plant of our contractor was submerged in water last month. It is likely that the road will get repaired by October 30 as directed by the state government,” said Sanjay Gautam, general manager of UP Jal Nigam.

The dug-up road is not only causing issues to commuters but also affecting residents of high-rises built near the road.

“Our high-rise is adjacent to the road and residents have been suffering from polluted surroundings for more than a year now. Due to pending road repair, the works of utility services like cleaning of drains and streetlights have also suffered. We approached authorities many times, but to no avail,” said Kapil Tyagi, president of Divyansh Pratham, a high-rise.

“The pending work has affected about 22 high-rises in the area. We even carried out protests against the bad condition of the CISF Road. But no one listened to us,” said Alok Kumar, founder member of federation of association of apartment owners.