GUWAHATI: The construction of the Maligaon flyover has been going on for quite some time now, and since its beginning, this problem has been a major cause of the traffic problems in the city. Even on a regular day, this traffic causes severe delays for office and school-going people and even emergency vehicles. With the famous Ambubachi Mela just about a month away, the local people have raised concerns regarding the traffic woes during the festive season.
Locals of the Pandu region of the city have raised several complaints regarding the flyover construction and mentioned that proper care has not been taken while planning and executing the project. They have mentioned that the duration of the construction project is way too long, mainly because of the mismanagement of the contractors. They also added about the unsafe placement of the construction materials at the site of construction, which has become a hazard for the local people.
People of the larger Maligaon region have put forward requests and complaints regarding the creation of an alternate route so that the traffic congestion on this route can be somewhat reduced. But no action was taken, leading to continuous traffic congestion in the region throughout the year. With no alternate route, even ambulances caring for patients in serious condition often find themselves stuck in this traffic.
Another key problem is the dust that rises from the construction site. With a large number of vehicles plying throughout the day, the amount of air pollution increases multifold. The locals have complained several times regarding the problem asking the competent authorities to arrange for the sprinkling of water on the road to reduce the amount of dust, but no action was taken in that direction as well.
Ambubachi is one of the biggest religious gatherings in the county and the city gets several thousand visitors during this festival causing massive traffic congestion in the part of the city leading to the Kamakhya Temple. This year, the local people of the region are worried that the condition will turn way worse because of the ongoing construction work. And they demanded that the district authorities along with the state police take ample steps to ensure the smooth movement of traffic during this duration.
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