Coils of wires and overhead cables hanging dangerously low over potholed roads have made walking or driving in Salt Lake risky.
Thousands of residents and commuters face hazards every day as coils of cables lie on pavements and roads. Such cables can trigger accidents involving pedestrians as well as two-wheelers.
The cratered roads can cause damage to a vehicle if the driver is not careful.
While the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) has started patchwork repairs on some stretches ofmain roads as well as streets inside blocks, the majority of the roads in all three sectors of the township are in a bad shape.
The roads are getting progressively worse as no major repairs have been carried out in the past seven years. Only patchwork repairs were undertaken, which not only wear out fast but also result in deeper craters with jagged edges.
On Sunday, The Telegraph took a drive through Salt Lake.
Broadway, one of the busiest arteries in Salt Lake, had cables strewn across both flanks. The median divider of the road, which connects Salt Lake with EM Bypass, too, had coils of cables lying on it.
The FE Block island, opposite the Bidhannagar Municipal School, had wires coiled around its railings as well as lamp posts. These spilled on the walkway around the island. There were also several wires sticking out dangerously on the road.
The stretch of the road that leads to EM Bypassfrom the Bidhannagar Municipal College, a stone’s throw from City Centre, was dotted with potholes.
The entire road till the Bypass did not have a single smooth stretch.
Cables lie on a pavement along Canal Side Road in Salt Lake on Sunday
Near BJ Block, a section of the road that has been dug up for laying high-speed internet cables is in a sorry state. The section that has been dug up is 8ft deep and 50ft wide but there was no signboard to warn motorists that they need to avoid the stretch and drive through the other flank.
Piyush Agarwal, a resident of CK Block, said driving or walking in the township had turned risky. Last week, he had to send his car for repairs as he had driven over a deep pothole and the front suspension had been damaged.
“I have got a repair bill of Rs 40,000. The entire front suspension of my sedan was damaged and multiple parts needed to be changed,” Agarwal said.
A senior traffic police officer of the Bidhannagar commissionerate admitted that accidents could happen because of deep potholes. On some stretches, they put up traffic cones and guardrails to warn motorists about craters.
The officer also said bent lamp posts with clumps of cables wrapped around them are spotted along every road and pavement in Salt Lake. There could be accidents if any of these lamp posts fall.
“All lamp posts are made of metal. If a post falls in front of a moving vehicle, the driver will have no time to press the brake. An accident is inevitable,” the officer said.
A senior official of the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation said they will ask cable operators to straighten the low-hanging cables.
Asked about the sorry state of roads, the official said they have started patchwork repairs.