Inordinate delay in completing Vempalli RoB irks motorists

To ease traffic snarls at the crossing, approximately an RoB stretching over a kilometre was sanctioned at an estimated cost of Rs.30 crore in 2016.

Kumram Bheem Asifabad: Work on a road-over-bridge (RoB) across a railway line between Peddabanda village in Sirpur (T) mandal and Vempalli village in Kaghaznagar mandal has been dragging on for nearly eight years, indicating the apathy of the officials concerned. The inordinate delay in execution of the work is causing major inconvenience to motorists.

Several vehicles including TSRTC buses coming from villages in Sirpur (T), Koutala, Chintalamanepalli, Bejjur mandals and several villages in Chandrapur district of the neighbouring Maharashtra pass through a railway crossing located in the forest between Peddabanda and Vempalli villages to reach Kaghaznagar and the district headquarters for various needs, including medical emergencies every day.

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To ease traffic snarls at the crossing, approximately an RoB stretching over a kilometre was sanctioned at an estimated cost of Rs.30 crore in 2016. Structures on either side of the railway line that fall in jurisdiction of the Roads and Buildings department were complete, spending Rs.19.77 crore so far. However, a 40-metre long slab, a key portion of the facility, and girders over the tracks are yet to be erected.

Roads and Buildings department Kaghaznagar divisional engineer Radhakrishna said that except for laying black top on either side of the bridge, the work was already complete. He stated that despite hurdles created by the Forest department while constructing the structure in the forest area, the work taken up by their department progressed as per schedule. He added that officials of the railways were not responding to their phone calls.

Due to reasons unknown, the construction of the slab and girders are moving slowly. The lethargic progress of the work is forcing motorists to wait for quite a long time to cross the busy yet important broad gauge line connecting south India with northern parts of the country situated between Kazipet and Maharashtra’s Balharshah junctions.

Rapelli Krishna, a businessman from Sirpur (T) mandal centre said that residents of several villages in four mandals and scores of habitations in the neighboring Maharashtra were experiencing severe inconvenience due to undue delay in execution of the work. He urged the officials to take steps to throw open the facility for the public at the earliest.