State Highways (SH) and Major District Roads (MDRs) in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Kodagu districts are all set to see better roads on the onset of new year as the PWD Circle has decided to breath life into the suffering roads with the target to set right and make them motorable by January 20, 2008.

Speaking to Deccan Herald, PWD Circle Superintending Engineer B S Balakrishna informed that all the roads except some State Highways will be touched upon and already some of the major State Highways have been repaired with the pothole filling works commencing right in December 2007 itself. The entire plan is to repair, rectify, resurface the roads and clean and paint the bridges and milestone all along the SHs and MDRs for beautification purposes. Malpe-Monakaloor, Chikkalgudda (Padubidri-Someshwara), Mangalore-Athrady, Airport Road-Maravoor are some of the State Highway roads already completed while work on the Mani-Ullal and some of the other important roads are near completion.

Mr Balakrishna said that he intends to bring in a change in the mindset of the people as the general opinion is that the department takes up the repair works late and completes it only by monsoon, due to which the commuters are deprived of the pleasure of driving on good roads as the monsoon certainly spoils the roads.

He says that the repair works have been started soon and will be completed soon so that the tourists and travellers get the pleasure of travelling on well maintained roads with well kept bridges for over four months till the monsoons begin.

He informed that the Principle Secretary Sudhir Krishna reviewing the works in the circle on December 26, 2007 too emphasised on the early completion of repair works of State Highway and MDR.

Mr Balakrishna said that while a total of Rs 6.5 crore grant has been sanctioned for the touch up works of the roads of three districts, the only hindrance in execution of the works in the district is scarcity of aggregates, lack of labourers, Bitumen and trained contractors as all of said factors are extensively engaged in the fast paced development taking place in the district itself.

He adds that the maintenance contract of the State Highway in the district was cancelled due to the non performance. This called for retendering of the contract. The process is still going on so that balance works could be executed at the earliest.

With the department pulling up its socks to take up the challenge of making pathetic roads motorable, the commuters have a reason to rejoice this new year hoping for a smooth, clean and well maintained roads.