Garhwal Post Bureau
DEHRADUN, 30 Aug: Uttarakhand’s Rural Development Minister Ganesh Joshi on Saturday reviewed the status of rural roads obstructed by heavy rains under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) in a meeting with officials of URRDA at his camp office.
The Minister directed officials to ensure that all rain–blocked roads are reopened on a priority and war-footing basis. He also spoke over phone with the Chief Secretary, instructing him to take concrete action for the immediate reconstruction of bridges damaged or washed away during the monsoon. He stressed that the reconstruction work must be expedited so that villagers are quickly relieved from transportation difficulties.
Officials informed that due to continuous heavy rainfall, a total of 166 roads are currently blocked across the state — 142 in Garhwal division and 24 in Kumaon division. So far, seven bridges have been damaged, out of which two have been completely washed away — one in Sobla-Umachiya (Dharachula, Pithoragarh district, Kumaon) and another in Khodi Baksir-Chhenagad motor road, Jakholi block, Rudraprayag district, Garhwal.
The Minister was informed that restoration works are being carried out on a war footing. Presently, 91 JCB machines in Garhwal region and 13 JCB machines in Kumaon region have been deployed to clear the obstructed routes.
Chief Engineer of URRDA Sanjay Kumar Pathak along with other departmental officials were present in the meeting.
