Odisha Govt To Come Up With New Policy On Road Construction

Bhubaneswar: In order to streamline the road construction works, the Odisha government is planning to bring a special policy soon.

This was revealed at a review meeting, presided by Works Minister Prithviraj Harichandan in Bhubaneswar on Sunday. The rules and regulations on construction of roads would be formulated for 50 years under the special policy, he said.

The minister said the government felt the necessity of a special policy due to various problems faced during road construction and repair for lack of coordination among different departments.

“The department including Works, Rural Development and Panchayatiraj and urban civic authorities besides NHAI and State Highway carry out construction and repair of roads under them from time to time. But these authorities face various issues for lack of coordination among them. The new policy will not only resolve these issues but also further smoothen the process,” he said.

Harichandan further said the policy would also frame rules for imposing penalty on the authorities which damage the roads for laying cables or constructing drains and other works without necessary permission.

The policy would also take other issues including traffic congestion, pedestrian problems and others into consideration. Besides, acquisition of private and forest land and construction of bridges over water bodies would be covered by the new policy, he added.