Bhubaneswar, Aug. 21: Residents of Samantarapur and adjacent areas took to the streets yesterday protesting against inordinate delay in the road expansion work of the NH-203 stretch between Samantarapur and Garage Square.

They staged a road blockade on the national highway till a senior engineer of NH (Orissa) reached the spot and assured them that the work would be over by October after the monsoon.

The Telegraph first reported on the condition of the road on August 10. The expansion work of the road, which forms an important part of Cuttack Road (connecting Puri with Bhubaneswar), has been going on for the last one year. While the local residents are suffering owing to bad condition of the stretch, tourists travelling to Puri and even the Old Town area of the city are getting a negative picture about the civic upkeep of the capital city.

Interestingly, while the road widening is yet to get over, construction of a median on the middle of the half-constructed road has added to the commuters’ woes. Two weeks ago, a cylinder-laden truck hit the median. Vehicles often get stuck in the potholes, especially in front of the State Bank of India. Councillor of ward No. 54 Malay Mohapatra said: “The delay in road construction has affected the local people. The students are also suffering as they largely depend on cycles or two-wheelers.” Apart from the 200-odd local residents, councillor of ward No. 56 Biranchi Narayan Mahasupakar was also present during the demonstration.

“After a shower, the area gets waterlogged with the potholes lying under muddy water. Three-wheelers and small cars face a tough time negotiating the stretch,” said Rashmi Mohapatra, convener of the Ekamra Vikash Manch, an organisation of local residents of the Old Town area. Former minister Suresh Kumar Routray and his supporters also attended the demonstration.

“There could be more accidents as a pool-like pit is created on the road in front of the SBI branch. Last week, the local residents had put a board near the road describing that it had become a hatchery ready for a pisciculture pond. However, the authorities have not responded to the problem,” she said.

The work related to the NH-203 expansion is proceeding at a slow pace though it is one of the busiest stretches from Cuttack to Puri.

Executive engineer of NH (Orissa) Jaladhar Pradhan held a discussion with the protesters. He assured them that the construction would be over by October and the road laying work will start after the monsoon.

Earlier, chief engineer of NH (Orissa) B.C. Pradhan told The Telegraph: “The work was suffering due to many factors. While the utility services like the electricity authorities, public health engineering organisation and telecom people took long to displace the electricity poles, telephone cables and water pipeline, the individual pipe connections were also to be shifted with special care.” Three platoons of police force were deployed at the spot near Samantarapur and deputy commissioner of police Nitinjeet Singh asked the people to keep law and order during the roadblock.