As you enter the main lane of the Ambikagiri Nagar area on RG Baruah Road, there is not much of a lane to speak of. The entire stretch seems to look like a construction site, covered with potholes, dust and large deposits of stones at regular intervals.
The drains in and around the area are freshly dug and seem to have been widened, seemingly giving a promise to the residents some respite from the clogged, overflowing drains. The unfulfilled promise of an overhaul that keeps getting postponed, delayed repairs during the monsoon, poor workmanship and the absence of a foolproof mechanism to monitor quality of work have bared the skeletons of Guwahati’s roads every year and especially so, of this particular locality on RG Baruah Road.
The administration has not been able to repair the potholes and commuters who suffer daily know their bone-rattlers well.
Pratima Pathak, a resident of Phani Path in Ambikagiri Nagar, has to bear the brunt every day. Speaking to G Plus, the long-time resident and shop owner said that her business has suffered because of the roads’ condition. "The stretch of the main lane in our area has multiple potholes. The surface has worn off. Vehicles have to crawl through this stretch and that creates a tail of vehicles that gets longer every hour. Residents and daily commuters suffer the worst because they have no other option than to take this very road," said Pathak. The roads that she takes every day have multiple stretches where the surface is as undulating as a dirt road.
“The main lane in the area I am living in, Ambikagiri Nagar, a stretch of not even 500 metres has been constructed for the past three years and due to the extreme weather conditions and dust, the people are facing extreme harassment health-wise and avoid leaving their homes or even use that road. Three years to construct a small lane in Guwahati? The government personnel living in the area travel in their air-conditioned cars and pay no heed to the plight of the common people who have to use the road for accessibility. Who should we blame? The irresponsibility of the PWD, the GMDA or the process of privatisation being largely followed by the government? Nevertheless, we have been victims for the past three years in the name of development,” said Devyani Sarma, a resident of the locality.
Speaking to G Plus she said, “Our leaders had promised us thorough repairs on the roads but what is actually done before the monsoon or election season is another round of patchwork, a temporary situation. Superficial repairs done during the monsoon wear out after a shower or two.”
When this reporter went to take stock of the locality, it was 2 PM and the visibility levels of the area were frightening to say the least. The entire stretch of the main road in Ambikagiri Nagar was littered with haphazard mounds of stones. It seemed that construction was ongoing given the amount of dust present, but there were no workers from PWD or GMDA in sight. Pratima Pathak explained that this was a regular occurrence. “The construction materials that you see on the road? It has barely been a week that they have been dumped here. The road remains like this, dusty and broken as ever. We can’t come out of our houses because the conditions are so terrible, our children can’t play outside,” Pathak added.
Residents of Ambikagiri Nagar are constantly irked by the worsening condition of roads in the area after every downpour or smart shower.
There is no asphalt layer on the surface of the road, causing formation of large potholes and exposing pedestrians and two-wheeler riders to the risk of accidents.
“Every time the rains are back, with it are the worries of residents as water stagnation on the streets is making it difficult for motorists to ride or drive. Routine work undertaken by the civic body to clean up storm water drains and lay pipelines and cables has worsened the condition of the already bad roads. There is no higher civic body in the city that we have not appealed to,” residents Anil Das and Wahid Choudhury said.
“While the road already had small potholes and no surface covering, now the stretch has been put up with roadblocks. One night’s rain floods the entire road and there is no place for pedestrians to walk,” said Anup Kalita, a resident.
Two-wheeler riders, too, struggle to tread this path. “Imagine the plight of senior citizens who walk up and down the street as a form of exercise,” another resident said.
The GMDA has not responded despite several complaints from the residents. Residents of the area rue that for a long time, they have put up with the un-motorable condition of Ambikagiri Nagar which branches off from the main RG Baruah Road. Despite the road being in a battered condition for several years the local authorities have not taken any definitive steps to re-lay the road. While the main road is in a battered condition, the interior roads are even worse, with most of them remaining mere mud tracks. Residents want the concerned authorities to take steps to address this issue as soon as possible.
According to sources, the contract of the construction of the main road of Ambikagiri Nagar was awarded to GM Constructions based out of Guwahati. Sources also confirm that the construction company is operated by the family members of a highly ranked official at the GMDA.
G Plus attempted to get in touch with the GMDA officials but to no avail.
With Guwahati’s weather changing and the onset of monsoon that looms heavy every year, what remains to be seen is if the residents of Ambikagiri Nagar have any respite this time.