Jamshedpur, Nov. 20: The state government’s plan to revamp NH-33 ahead of the 34th National Games may come a cropper in the absence of funds. A Rs 10-crore proposal to the Centre for repair of the highway, which falls under the Jamshedpur division of the road construction department, has been pushed to the low-priority list for reasons not clear.

Senior officials of the road construction department said the state had sent a proposal requesting Rs 174.75 crore for repair of national highways before the Games. “We want to repair a 46km stretch of NH-33 that passes through Jamshedpur. We have learnt that the Centre has accorded our proposal low priority. This means we may not get the Rs 10 crore required for revamp,” said an official of the department. He pointed out that the steel city would host a few events during the National Games and the state government was looking forward to improving the condition of NH-33 without delay.

Executive engineer, National Highway Jamshedpur Division, Ram Kumar Singh, said the acceptance of the proposal would have been a big boost. “We had sent the proposal as directed by the state government, but, unfortunately, it has been put on the backburner. This year, we have received only Rs 57 lakh under the repair and maintenance funds for NH-33,” he added.

Singh said contractors had already been engaged in the repair work, but the project may come to a standstill if the Centre freezes the flow of funds. “The money we have received so far under the repair and maintenance funds is insufficient for improving the condition of road. The 46km stretch is filled with potholes.”

The executive engineer said he would soon send notices to contractors to ensure that the work is complete by the end of December.

Singh blamed hotels along NH-33 for the bad condition of the road. “The hotels lack proper drainage system. The sewage spills on the road and creates potholes. We have decided to identify these hotels and issue notices,” he said.