Driving on Dudda road, a nightmare

A drive on the Dudda Road, in Hassan district, is nightmarish again for vehicle users, with loosened gravel and potholes, despite asphaltation only a few months ago.

Though it is unbelievable, it is a fact that the Dudda road was repaired four months ago, after the protests were intensified. Now, just four months after asphaltation, potholes have reappeared at umpteen number of places. The residents fear, by the time the monsoon is over, the road would turn worse, rendering all their struggle a waste.

Protests
It would become inevitable for the people to launch another round of protests if the stretch turns un-motorable after the rainy season.

Dudda Road has the record of being a mute witness to a number of protests since a decade, thanks to the lack of political will of the netas, confusion between the government and the contractors and other issues.

But, the government has not considered the issue seriously. Finally, when the people of the region, supported by various organisations, staged an intensified day and night protest, the government woke up from a slumber and assured to begin the works.

Crores spent
All processess, including tenders, were completed in a jiffy and the road was asphalted at a cost of Rs 14 crore. But, the road could not withstand the traffic and has been damaged, mirroring the substandard quality of the works.

The road is motorable only up to Kendriya Vidyalaya, near Dairy Circle.

The road has developed plenty of potholes and the gravel has loosened on the edges of the road. Huge potholes can be found near Doddapura, thanks to overloaded trucks plying on the stretch. From there, innumerable potholes have formed and works have been taken to patch them up. The locals fear that the condition of the road would be back to square one even before the monsoon begins.