A road that could shorten the distance between Dehradun and Dhanaulti has been lying in a shambles for past several years. The work on the construction road —from Maldevta on the outskirts of Dehradun to Kyara, the last village of the district bordering Dhanaulti — is yet to start despite the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) intervention.
The 35-km stretch has not been repaired in the past several years, with potholes taking shape of craters and most of the stretches having now turned into gravel, sand and dust. This has been causing immense problems to thousands of people living in the region.
A Block Development Council (BDC) member from Kyara village, Mahadev Bhatt, wrote a letter to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s seeking his intervention for immediate construction of the road — still the only lifeline for residents of the village. The PMO responded in September sending him a letter addressed to Uttarakhand chief secretary and asking the latter to expedite the matter. Two months later, no construction activity has been started on this road.
This road lies in the mountainous areas and runs along the Bandal river, which provides drinking water to Dehradun. Sarkhet area, which lies at the lower point of this road, had witnessed a calamity in August 2014 when several fields had been swept away in the spate of the Bandal river.
Bhatt said that the road is also important from the tourism point of view as it connects Dehradun directly with Dhanaulti, which lies at the distance of 35 kms only. Another route connecting the two districts through Mussoorie was much longer at 60 kms, he claimed. Bhatt said that he and other villagers met chief secretary Utpal Kumar Singh at his office Monday and he has promised to look in to the matter.
{{/usCountry}}Bhatt said that the road is also important from the tourism point of view as it connects Dehradun directly with Dhanaulti, which lies at the distance of 35 kms only. Another route connecting the two districts through Mussoorie was much longer at 60 kms, he claimed. Bhatt said that he and other villagers met chief secretary Utpal Kumar Singh at his office Monday and he has promised to look in to the matter.
{{/usCountry}}“It is unfortunate. If the condition of such a vital road in the outskirts of the capital city is so dismal, one can well imagine the plight of the people in the remote areas of the state,” said Bhatt.
Rishi Ram Joshi who belongs to village Simyari and supplies milk to Dehradun everyday on his motorcycle said he was facing lots of problems due to the bad condition of the road. “The vehicle develops snags continuously due to the poor condition of the roads. Several other youths and I are contemplating of migrating to Dehradun for livelihood,” he said.
Chief Secretary Utpal Kumar Singh could not be contacted despite repeated attempts.