A giant hole in the middle of a road in Uttar Pradesh's Agra became a protest site when Samajwadi Party leader Nitin Kohli climbed down into it using a ladder. As locals watched, Kohli stood inside the pit created after the road suddenly caved in and accused authorities of failing to address repeated road collapses during the monsoon.
The road in the city's posh Kamla Nagar locality suddenly gave way on Friday, leaving behind a several-feet-deep pit and forcing authorities to close the stretch to traffic. No injuries were reported, but residents said the collapse could have led to a major accident had a vehicle been passing through at the time.
Standing inside the pit, Kohli alleged corruption in development works and said that the “Tajnagari,” (Agra) was turning into a "Gaddha Nagari" (city of potholes). Calling the hole a "road to Pataal" (road to the underworld), he claimed that roads in the city continue to sink during the rainy season, putting people's safety at risk.
The Agra incident comes days after the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) cracked down on the concessionaire responsible for the Lucknow-Kanpur Expressway after cracks and erosion were reported on parts of the newly opened highway.
According to NHAI officials, the project director has been suspended and debarred from the company's operations while the leader of the independent engineering team has also been suspended.
The construction agency has also been issued a show-cause notice and asked to submit an explanation, explaining the reasons behind the cracks emerging on the highway, within weeks of opening, news agency PTI reported.
The crackdown on the concessionaire comes on the back of inconveniences faced by the commuters as a stretch on the highway suffered erosion and developed cracks at multiple locations across the edges of the carriageway. The repair work was initiated soon after reports emerged, while diversions were put in place on the 63-km carriageway to ensure smooth traffic.
The NHAI took cognisance of the gaps and slippages flagged by commuters on the expressway and cracked the whip on the concessionaire.
Notably, the expressway, built at a cost of Rs 4,200 crore, was constructed by Agra-based PNC Infratech Limited. It was inaugurated on July 13 by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
(With inputs from Laxmi Kant Sharma)
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