Gurgaon: Sector 65 residents’ long wait for roads, streetlights continues

Residents of Sector 65 said they often have to call up family members or security guards to escort them home from work as they feel unsafe on the poorly-lit roads

Residents of Sector 65 are still waiting for the government to deliver on promises to build roads and install streetlights despite despite moving into the area two years ago.

The road connecting Sector 65 to Golf Course Road is riddled with potholes. (Leena Dhankhar/HT PHOTO)

Huge potholes on the roads and pitch darkness during the evening have rendered Sector 65 unsafe for residents and visitors and the problem is further accentuated by the absence of a police post in the area.

The situation has come to such a pass that the residents have to ring up family members and even security guards to escort them safely to their condominiums when they reach close to their homes. Residents said they have been urging the authorities to build basic infrastructure and ensure safety, but not much has been done to address these issues.

“While the roads in Sector and not properly maintained, the condition of the approach roads are worse. The roads are riddled with potholes, which lead to waterlogging during the monsoon. All sector roads here are a mix or slush and water,” Zaheer Abbas, a Sector 65 resident, said.

Lack of streetlights is another reason why residents, especially women, are feeling unsafe during evening hours. While on most roads, the streetlights don’t function, in some, they are simply not there, the residents said. Women said they fear for their safety on way home as the evening sets in.

“I call up my husband and ask him to pick me up from the main road on reaching the sector after office. There are not enough streetlights on the roads and one feels unsafe walking on them. They are riddled with potholes as well,” Monika Kalra, another resident, said.

Read I Gurgaon: One-metre deep pothole on Sohna Road a headache for commuters

The entrance road to the sector, from the Golf Course Extension Road, is broken and full of potholes. Often, residents have to seek help from fellow dwellers to reach their residential complex.

Residents said their vehicles often break down at night because of the potholes and waterlogging. “It is impossible to call a mechanic in this area at night,” Inderjit Randhawa, another resident, said.

Officials of the Haryana urban development authority (Huda) said they will look into the status of the main roads in Sector 65 and do the needful.“However, the onus of building and maintaining internal roads is on the developer,” a senior Huda official said.