GUWAHATI: The Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) is on a spree of development activities and one of them is to light up the streets of Guwahati by 2021.
22 local agencies have been allotted the tender of repairing the non-functional streetlights along the main roads of Guwahati.
Dipankar Kakoti, Superintendent Engineer of the Electric Branch of GMC informed G Plus, "We have outsourced the work to 22 agencies and work is currently under way at GS Road, AT Road, GNB Road, MRD Road, MG Road, RG Baruah Road, Mother Teresa Road, Panjabari, Hatigoan, etc."
"The department is internally working to restore streetlights on the lanes and by-lanes where electric connection for the same is available. Many damaged poles are also being repaired," he said.
Over Rs. 9 crores is the estimated expense of the work.
"But there are many nook and corners of the city where there is no connection for streetlights. We are assessing the feasibility and the work required for the same. Once it is done and the expense is decided upon we will start work," Kakoti added.
Commuters and residents have been regularly complaining about the non-functioning of streetlights along major stretches of the Guwahati bypass, the NH37. Kakoti informed that many connections and electric lines along the highway had been damaged by the various departments and agencies while digging up the road.
"GMC has taken up that work as well. We are repairing the damaged lines and even the highway will be lit up fully soon," Kakoti added.
Reportedly, there are around 5,000 streetlights on the main roads of Guwahati and 10,000 more on the smaller lanes.